FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


FIRES 


DESIRE 

A  Tragedy  of  Modern  India 

By 
LAURENCE  R.  MANSFIELD 


Illustrations  By 
F.   GILBERT  EDGE 


1907 

THE  C.  M.  CLARK  PUBLISHING  Co. 
BOSTON 


Copyright,   1906. 

THE  C.  M.  CLARK  PUBLISHING  CO., 
Boston,   Mass. 


Entered  at 
Stationer's  Hall,  London. 

Dramatic  and  all  other 
RIGHTS  RESERVED. 


CONTENTS 

Chapters  Page 

I  A  Noble  Brahmin                                 .          ,          I 

II  From  the  Unreal  to  the    Real    ...          9 

III  Days  of  Decision    .          .          .          .          .30 

IV  Eastward  Bound     .          .          .          .          -55 
V  The  Shadow  of  Coming  Events          .          .        77 

VI  Echoes  of  Bygone  Times           .          .          .92 

VII  From  Light  To  Darkness           .          .          .      117 

VIII  The  Darkness  Deepens     .          .          .          .      145 

IX  Among  The  Ruins            .          .          .          .160 

X     Ships  That  Pass 175 

XI     Unto  The  Hills 190 

XII  Among  The  Heights        ....     206 

XIII  A  Shadowy  Vale  and  Beyond   .          .          .226 

XIV  Heavens  of  Brass  and  Earth  of  Iron  .          .241 
XV  An  Emergency  Call         .          .          .          .258 

XVI  Fainting  By  The  Way     .          .          .          .277 

XVII  A  Hand  Out  of  the  Darkness  .          .          .      297 

XVIII  The  Bird  With  A  Broken  Pinion         .          .313 

XIX  Strong  As  Death     .          .          .          .          .332 

XX  Love's  Coronation            .          .          .          .347 


2137220 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Page 

"Walked  leisurely  together,  —  the  gray-haired 
little  woman,  by  the  side  of  the  tall,  stalwart 
young  man."  ......  37 

"  Oh,"  she  said,  "  it  is  an  evil  omen  of  a  blot 

upon  your  life."  .....  91 

"May  I  come?"  asked  the  voice.  .         .  139 

"  And  for  God's  sake  tell  me  it  is  not  true."    .  165 

"  Radha  gathered  flowers."      ....  191 

"  Really,  you  ought  not  to  try  to  cross  tonight 
in  the  miserable  scow  they  have  here."  .  267 

"Mother?  Where  is  she?"     ....  298 

"  You  must  come  again,  Miss  Everest."  .           344 


FIEES  OF  DESIEE 

CHAPTER  I 

A  NOBLE  BRAHMIN 

THE  boom  of  the  half-past  nine  gun  sounded 
out  from  Fort  William.  About  the  Maidan  and 
in  the  houses  near  by,  it  reverberated  so  heavily 
that  everyone  not  long  accustomed  to  hearing  it 
at  close  range,  involuntarily  started.  But  far 
away  in  the  northern  part  of  the  city,  where  the 
Mukerji  mansion  stood  in  its  spacious  grounds 
on  Cornwallis  Street,  the  noise  of  the  cannon 
sounded  distant  and  muffle'd. 

As  the  report  of  the  gun  penetrated  the  silence 
of  the  great  house  its  master  stirred  a  little,  as 
though  he  might  rouse  from  the  stupor  that  had 
been  settling  upon  him  since  nightfall.  He  gazed 
listlessly  about  upon  his  attendants  for  a  mo- 
ment. Then,  with  a  heavy  sigh,  he  closed  his 
eyes  again. 

The  sick  man's  daughter  had  started  eagerly 


2  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

towards  the  bed  as  her  father  had  opened  his  eyes. 
But  the  doctor  motioned  her  back.  Her  mute  ap- 
peal he  quietly  answered. 

"  It  is  best  not  to  disturb  him.  He  is  not  in 
any  pain.  His  life  is  ebbing,  but  there  is  nothing 
we  can  do  for  him.  I  fear  he  will  not  last  beyond 
midnight." 

Then  silence  fell  upon  the  little  group  of 
anxious  watchers.  The  barefooted,  white-tur- 
baned  servants,  kept  on  duty  late  that  night, 
moved  noiselessly  about,  or  stood  in  the  cor- 
ridors speaking  together  in  whispers1.  Without, 
the  streets  that  had  been  thronged  all  day  with 
the  noisy  sons  of  the  East,  were  already  well- 
nigh  deserted.  The  bells  on  the  street-car  horses 
tinkled  lazily  as  the  weary  brutes  jogged  pain- 
fully along.  There  were  heard  occasional  out- 
cries from  near  and  far,  and  the  rumble  of  car- 
riage wheels  driven  rapidly  along.  But  the  me- 
tropolis of  India  was  dropping  off  to  sleep.  The 
few  spasmodic  noises  were  faint  reminders  of 
what  had  been,  and  of  what  would  be  again  with 
the  dawning  of  another  day.  They  almost  lost 
themselves  amid  the  trees  and  shrubbery  of  the 
garden  that  surrounded  the  sick  man's  house. 

Long  before  the  city  of  Calcutta  had  come 
surging  and  clamoring  about  it,  the  Mukerji 
mansion  had  stood  in  its  beautiful  grounds.  One 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  3 

generation  after  another  of  proud  possessors 
had  done  their  utmost  to  make  both  house  and 
gardens  as  sumptuous  as  any  prince  might  desire. 
Broad  driveways  lined  with  stately  palm  trees, 
clumps  of  luxuriant  shrubbery,  beds  and  borders 
of  resplendent  flowers,  graceful  marble  statuary 
and  fountains,  all  in  a  setting  of  rich  green  grass, 
left  little  to  be  desired  in  the  surroundings. 
While  the  great,  old  mansion,  with  its  wide 
verandas,  and  vast,  rambling  corridors  and  cham- 
bers, was  filled  with  rich  treasures.  Orient  and 
Occident  had  yielded  up  all  that  wealth  and  cul- 
ture could  demand  for  the  gratification  and 
comfort  of  the  successive  masters  of  that  palace. 
In  bygone  days,  that  goodly  heritage  had  been 
held  by  one  large  family  of  Mukerjis  after  an- 
other. They  had  dwelt  together  in  patriarchal 
fashion,  after  the  time-honored  custom  of  the 
country.  The  father  and  mother,  the  sons  and 
their  wives  and  children,  even  the  grandchil- 
dren's wives  and  children — if  the  gods  had 
granted  the  patriarch  the  bliss  of  a  life  so  long  as 
to  reach  unto  such  blessedness — such  was  the 
joint-family  that  dwelt  beneath  one  roof.  Upon 
the  death  of  his  father,  however,  Satis  Kumar 
Mukerji  was  the  sole  heir  of  all  the  vast  estates 
of  the  ancient  house.  Aside  from  his  wife  and 
child,  near  kinsfolk  he  had  none. 


4  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

He  was  a  young  man  at  that  time.  His  father 
had  given  him  every  advantage  that  the  coun- 
try afforded.  At  the  age  of  twenty  he  had  re- 
ceived his  Bachelor's  degree  from  the  University 
of  Calcutta.  Two  years  later  he  had  taken  his 
Master's  degree  with  high  honors.  Later  yet,  he 
had  completed  a  law  course  and  become  a  Bache- 
lor of  Law.  Not  that  Satis  Kumar  intended  to 
practice  law,  or  turn  any  of  his  other  college 
training  to  pecuniary  uses.  His  wealth  was 
abundant;  his  only  serious  occupation  would 
be  the  management  of  his  estates.  He  was  not  a 
man  of  very  strenuous  purposes  in  those  days. 
The  climate  of  Bengal,  and  sufficient  income  to 
make  toil  needless,  usually  see  to  it  that  a  man 
is  not. 

The  religious  earnestness  and  other- worldli- 
ness,  so  characteristic  of  the  children  of  India, 
had  been  dissipated  by  studies  in  Western  sci- 
ence and  philosophy.  He  knew  too  much  to  be  a 
devout  and  orthodox  Hindu.  He  knew  too  little 
to  be  able  to  conceive  of  anything  more  worthy 
of  credence  in  the  way  of  religion.  He  would 
probably  have  called  himself  an  agnostic.  In 
reality,  he  was  simply  in  the  confusion  of  a 
transitional  period  of  his  religious  life,  and  was 
trying  to  escape  its  difficulties  by  indifference 
and  levity.  After  all,  what  need  had  young 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  5 

Mukerji  to  distress  himself  over  the  turmoil 
caused  by  the  introduction  of  the  new  wine  of 
Western  culture  and  Christianity  into  the  old 
wine-skins  of  effete  Orientalism  and  Hinduism? 
Was  he  not  a  Brahmin  of  the  Brahmins?  Did 
he  not  wear  the  name  of  one  of  the  original  four 
noble  families  of  Bengal?  Had  he  not  such  a 
physique  as  few  of  his  fellow-countrymen  could 
boast?  How  many  could  display  higher  aca- 
demic honors,  or  more  princely  wealth?  And 
even  though  he  was  the  only  son  of  his  father, 
and  had  but  one  son  of  his  own,  was  not  that 
son  a  wonderful  child?  and  would  he  not  per- 
petuate a  noble  line?  With  such  thoughts,  at 
least,  the  young  man  had  sought  to  quiet  his 
restlessness  and  satisfy  his  longings. 

So  a  number  of  years  had  passed,  bringing 
but  little  change  to  the  proud  young  Brahmin 
or  his  family.  Then  there  suddenly  fell  the  sad 
strokes  of  fate  that  had  changed  all  his  views 
of  life.  His  son,  who  had  grown  into  a  manly 
lad  in  whom  all  his  father's  hopes  centered,  sud- 
denly sickened  and  died  of  fever.  His  wife  had 
not  been  strong  since  the  birth  of  a  daughter  a 
few  years  before.  Broken  in  spirit  over  the  loss  of 
her  son,  she  soon  died.  When  Satis  Kumar 
stood  by  the  burning  ghat  on  the  river  bank  and 
Baw  the  body  of  his  son  burnt  to  ashes,  and  the 


6  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

ashes  swept  into  the  stream  and  borne  away,  his 
soul  was  full  of  anguish.  When,  a  little  later, 
he  followed  to  the  same  sad  spot  the  body  of  the 
dead  wife  whom  he  had  tenderly  loved,  his  heart 
was  well-nigh  burst  with  grief. 

He  went  back  to  his  desolate  mansion  in  deep 
bitterness  of  spirit.  There  was  no  comfort  for 
him  in  his  once  boasted  agnosticism;  religious 
indifference  had  become  an  impossibility.  His 
heart  cried  out  for  comfort.  A  broken  spirit 
longed  for  some  balm  of  healing.  Belonging  to  a 
race  in  which  passive  endurance  had  been  de- 
veloped through  long  centuries,  he  could  not 
exhaust  his  grief  by  wearing  himself  out  in 
wildly  rebellious  thoughts.  Contact  with  the 
new  life  that  had  invaded  his  land  had  over- 
thrown for  him  the  forms  of  faith  and  the  habits 
of  thought  in  which  he  might  otherwise  have 
taken  refuge.  He  was  left  sadly  to  struggle  with 
the  riddle  of  existence. 

Late  one  night  in  June,  after  a  day  of  intense 
heat,  Mr.  Mukerji  was  sitting  in  an  arbor  in  the 
midst  of  his  beautiful  garden.  The  south  wind 
was  beginning  to  blow  refreshingly  through  the 
vines  and  trees.  A  great  stillness  had  settled 
upon  everything,  broken  only  by  the  musical 
plash  of  fountains,  and  the  rustle  of  leaves.  In 
the  deep  blue  vault  of  the  sky  the  stars  were  flash- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  7 

ing  and  twinkling  as  they  can  only  in  India. 
Six  months  had  passed  since  the  man's  sore  be- 
reavement had  come  upon  him.  Surcease  from 
sorrow  he  had  sought  in  vain.  He  was  sadly 
questioning  concerning  the  Power  that  rules  this 
world,  and  wondering  at  the  changes  and  chances 
of  this  mortal  life.  His  thoughts  dwelt  upon 
those  who  had  loved  him  and  passed  away  into 
the  great  silence.  They  centered  at  length  upon 
his  mother,  that  gentle,  patient  woman  whose 
whole  life  had  been  her  home,  her  husband,  and 
especially  her  boy.  He  felt  that  it  would  bring 
unspeakable  comfort  to  his  broken  heart  if  he 
could  lay  his  head  upon  that  mother's  breast 
and  sob  out  his  grief  as  he  had  in  the  days  of 
childhood. 

Then,  suddenly,  there  fell  upon  his  troubled 
spirit  a  mystic  calm.  Somewhere  from  out  the 
stillness  of  the  night  a  voice  seemed  to  speak  to 
him. 

"  Like  unto  your  mother  in  gentleness  and  love, 
is  God,"  said  that  voice.  "  Tell  your  griefs  to 
Him,  and  he  will  comfort  your  heart." 

It  was  as  though  the  hand  of  a  master-player 
had  been  gently  laid  upon  the  harp  of  life  to 
hush  all  its  discordant  vibrations.  The  calm 
that  fell  upon  the  troubled  soul  of  the  man  was 
but  the  prelude  of  music  which  was  to  be 
awakened  later  by  the  same  master-hand.  Satis 


8  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Kumar  sat  for  hours  meditating  upon  the  Being 
who  had  the  love  and  gentleness  of  a  mother, 
with  the  wisdom  and  power  of  a  God.  From 
meditation  he  passed  to  adoration  and  commun- 
ion. Then,  in  the  light  of  the  new  revelation 
which  had  come  to  him,  he  looked  back  over  his 
past  life,  and  out  into  the  future.  Many  things 
seemed  to  be  set  right  at  once.  Other  things 
seemed  not  to  matter. 

At  last  he  aroused  himself  with  the  thought  of 
a  new  necessity  that  was  laid  upon  him  by  his 
comforting  conception  of  God.  It  led  to  a  reso- 
lution which  expressed  itself  in  a  prayer. 

"  O  my  God,  I  know  not  by  what  right  I  hold 
this  comforting  thought  of  Thee.  My  soul  tells 
me  that  it  is  true.  Of  Thy  great  grace  grant  me 
power  to  verify  it,  and  to  find  some  sure  ground 
upon  which  it  may  rest.  Then  will  I  proclaim 
it  unto  others,  while  rejoicing  evermore  in  its 
light." 

He  entered  his  house  and  went  to  his  room. 
So  hushed  was  his  spirit  as  he  lay  down  to  rest, 
that  he  might  have  been  the  wayworn  man  seen 
by  the  immortal  dreamer  in  the  Palace  Beauti- 
ful. As  it  had  been  with  that  tired  wanderer, 
so  now  it  was  with  this,  for  "  The  Pilgrim  they 
laid  in  a  large  upper  chamber,  whose  window 
opened  towards  the  sunrising:  and  the  name 
of  the  chamber  was  Peace." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


CHAPTER   II 

FROM  THE  UNREAL  TO  THE  REAL 

FROM  that  night  Satis  Kumar  Mukerji  began 
life  anew.  His  little  daughter,  hitherto  left  to 
the  care  of  a  widowed  cousin,  was  taken  into  his 
heart  and  watched  over  with  personal  devotion. 
The  things  that  were  of  concern  to  his  country, 
and  especially  the  sad  condition  of  the  masses 
of  the  people,  occupied  a  large  place  in  his 
thoughts.  So  had  the  realization  of  God's  love 
enlarged  his  heart  and  quickened  his  sensibilities. 
.  But  for  years  much  of  his  energy  was  consumed 
!  in  a  search  for  the  God  in  whom  he  had  come  to 
believe.  Through  the  many  ponderous  volumes 
that  make  up  the  sacred  books  of  his  land,  he 
sought  for  his  God.  He  found  Him  not,  albeit 
he  read  much  that  deepened  his  religious  nature, 
and  anchored  him  to  the  determination  to  live 
for  the  unseen  things  that  are  eternal.  Learned 
Pundits  he  consulted;  unto  the  words  of  holy. 


io  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Yogis  he  listened.  All  was  in  vain.  At  last  he 
was  forced  to  realize  that  his  scriptures  and  their 
accredited  interpreters  knew  nought  of  his  God 
whom  he  had  found  in  the  stillness  of  his  garden. 
Nor  did  the  new  societies  that  were  offshoots 
from  the  religion  of  the  land  satisfy  him.  The 
fantastic  interpretation  put  upon  the  Vedas  by 
the  Arya  Somaj,  and  their  efforts  to  show  that 
all  the  discoveries  of  modern  science  and  in- 
ventive genius  were  antedated  in  those  venerable 
writings,  he  regarded  with  contempt.  Their 
methods  of  antagonizing  and  unfairly  dealing 
with  all  who  opposed  them,  he  scorned.  With 
the  Brahmo  Somaj  he  found  himself  in  greater 
sympathy.  From  their  devotional  writings  and 
religious  meetings  he  received  much  help.  But 
he  was  kept  from  casting  his  lot  in  with  them, 
both  because  he  saw  that  he  could  hold  to  what- 
ever he  desired  of  their  teaching  without  break- 
ing with  his  co-religionists,  and  because  he  real- 
ized better  than  many  of  their  own  number 
seemed  to  do,  how  dependent  they  were  upon 
Christianity  for  all  that  is  best  in  their  teaching. 
The  very  thought  of  God  that  had  brought  him 
near  to  Christian  truth  had  so  kindled  his  love 
for  his  fellow-countrymen  as  to  make  him  zealous 
for  all  that  was  Indian.  He  found  himself  in 
fellowship  with  that  select  company  of  cultured 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  u 

Indians  who  had  begun  to  cherish  sentiments 
of  patriotism,  and  theories  of  social  reform. 
With  them,  opposition  to  the  Western  religion 
was  regarded  as  essential  to  a  true  love  of  India. 

Mukerji  was  like  his  associates  in  honestly 
opposing  the  faith  whose  spirit  and  methods  he 
was  unconsciously  adopting.  They  had  all  grown 
up  under  the  influence  of  European  civilization. 
Much  of  their  thinking  and  talking  of  reform  had 
to  be  done  in  English.  The  various  vernaculars 
were  rather  barren  of  words  to  express  the  new 
ideas,  since  the  ideas  were  not  indigenous.  No 
vernacular,  but  the  foreign  tongue  taught  them 
by  their  conquerors,  was  the  medium  of  universal 
communication  among  the  widely-scattered  ad- 
vocates of  the  new  thought.  A  hundred  years 
of  missionary  activity  had  united  with  the  forces 
of  modern  culture  to  Christianize  the  thought 
of  educated  Bengalis.  The  younger  men  had 
ways  of  thinking  of  all  religious  and  social  ques- 
tions that  would  have  been  strange  to  former 
generations.  But  they  had  breathed  them  in  un- 
consciously. They  were  not  aware  that  their 
ideas  were  not  the  natural  product  of  their  own 
land. 

Hence  Mukerji  little  appreciated  how  purely 
Christian  was  his  new  conception  of  God  and 
duty.  All  the  bitter  prejudices  of  generations  of 


12  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

haughty  Brahmins  were  naturally  in  his  head 
and  heart.  To  them  was  added  the  new  hostility 
begotten  by  patriotic  love  for  India  and  all 
things  Indian.  So,  while  he  read  the  Bible  along 
with  other  scriptures,  and  drew  much  inspiration 
from  its  pages,  he  was  too  blind  to  discover  that 
therein  was  revealed  what  his  soul  sought.  Nor 
did  he  dream  that  his  quest  would  ever  lead  him 
to  embrace  the  faith  of  the  conquerors  of  his 
country. 

None  the  less  the  man  was  an  honest  and 
earnest  seeker  after  truth.  Every  morning  he 
uttered  the  prayer  from  the  Rig  Veda  that  all 
pious  Brahmins  offer — 

"  Let  us  meditate  on  that  excellent  glory  of  the 

Divine  Vivifier : 

May  He  illumine  our  understanding." 

Daily  did  he  make  the  confession  always  made 
by  the  best  of  Brahmins — 

"  I  am  sinful,  I  commit  sin,  my  nature  is  sin- 
ful, I  am  conceived  in  sin." 

Nor  did  he  fail  constantly  to  add  that  beauti- 
ful petition  from  the  Upanishads — 

"  From  the  unreal,  lead  me  to  the  real ; 
From  darkness,  lead  me  to  light; 
From  death,  lead  me  to  immortality." 

Being  an  intelligent  and  honest  man,  the  peti- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  13 

tioner  did  much  to  answer  his  prayers  by  faith- 
fully seeking  the  light. 

His  devotion  to  God  and  men  brought  Mukerji 
into  prominence  among  all  his  people.  No  voice 
was  more  eloquent  nor  more  eagerly  heard  in  the 
National  Congress.  No  man  was  more  beloved 
by  all  the  distressed  poor  than  he.  None  other 
had  greater  influence  in  educational  and  govern- 
mental circles.  Yet  the  passing  of  the  years 
left  him  unsatisfied.  He  had  not  found  any- 
where among  the  scriptures  and  sects  and  socie- 
ties of  his  people  an  apprehension  of  the  intui- 
tion or  revelation  which  had  come  to  his  soul 
that  night  in  his  summer  house.  Though  he 
continued  to  cling  to  it,  and  found  it  a  solace 
and  inspiration,  he  felt  at  times  that  it  would 
slip  away  from  him.  It  was  so  subjective;  he 
had  failed  so  signally  to  find  for  it  an  objective 
foundation;  all  his  friends  seemed  to  know  or 
care  so  little  about  it.  Without  the  aid  that 
comes  from  an  accredited  revelation,  or  the  fel- 
lowship of  those  of  a  like  precious  faith,  the  man 
sometimes  feared  that  he  was  deceiving  himself 
with  an  empty  dream  of  his  own  troubled  brain. 

It  was  while  such  thoughts  were  strong  upon 
him  that  Satis  Kumar  went  one  afternoon  to  the 
University  Senate  House  to  see  the  registrar 
on  a  matter  of  business.  Upon  leaving  the  build- 


14  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

ing  he  met  an  old  friend,  and  they  strolled  up 
and  down  the  broad  colonnade  talking  together. 
His  friend  was  a  Vedantist,  with  belief  in  an  im- 
personal deity,  the  transmigration  and  final 
absorbtion  of  the  soul,  and  all  the  rest  of  the  old- 
time  comfortless  philosophy  of  the  land.  Mukerji 
loved  the  man,  but  shrank  from  his  philosophy. 
His  vague  intuition,  however,  was  no  match  for 
the  relentless  arguments  of  his  friend,  supported 
as  they  were  by  the  most  venerated  scriptures 
of  Hinduism,  and  woven  into  the  very  warp  and 
woof  of  India's  age-old  thought  and  life.  On  that 
day  above  all  others,  he  felt  ill-prepared  to  con- 
tend for  his  faith  in  a  personal  Father-God  who 
tenderly  cares  for  all  His  children.  He  was  not 
sorry  when  the  attention  of  both  of  them  was 
arrested  by  an  unusual  throng  of  people  in  the 
public  square  just  across  the  street. 

Near  the  entrance  to  the  square  a  man  was 
standing  upon  a  small  platform  and  addressing 
a  constantly  increasing  crowd  of  men.  Meetings 
were  frequently  held  in  College  Square  by  Brah- 
mos,  Hindus,  and  Christians.  The  only  thing 
remarkable  about  the  meeting  the  men  noticed 
that  day  was  its  size.  The  speaker  was  white, 
and,  therefore,  presumably  a  Christian.  That 
made  the  exceptionally  large  attendance  the  more 
noteworthy. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE.  15 

"  Who  is  the  speaker?  "  asked  Mukerji  of  his 
friend. 

"  How  should  I  know,"  he  replied.  "  Some 
new  advocate  of  that  raw,  young  creed  of  the 
Europeans." 

The  Vendantist  prided  himself  upon  the  hoary 
antiquity  of  his  ancestral  faith. 

"  He  must  be  a  recent  arrival  in  the  city," 
said  Mukerji.  "  I  have  never  before  seen  him, 
and  I  know  most  of  the  missioners." 

For  a  few  minutes  they  watched  the  speaker 
in  silence.  They  could  catch  but  few  of  his  words 
above  the  noise  of  the  street.  But  his  earnest- 
ness and  the  eager  attention  of  his  auditors 
seemed  to  proclaim  him  a  man  of  some  oratorical 
power.  Partly  to  escape  further  argument,  and 
partly  to  satisfy  his  curiosity,  Mukerji  proposed 
that  they  go  over  and  listen  to  the  man  for  a  few 
moments. 

"  I  shall  not  go,"  replied  his  companion.  "  I 
care  nought  for  such  rantings.  But  if  you  are 
going  in  for  a  personal  God,  you  better  turn 
Christian.  Such  things  as  you  say  you  believe 
can  find  support  nowhere  else." 

The  man  spoke  half  in  banter,  and  half  in 
seriousness,  but  wholly  in  gentleness  and  quiet- 
ness of  spirit. 

After  a  few  words  of  farewell,  Mukerji  left 


16  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

him.  Crossing  the  street  he  entered  the  square 
and  stood  upon  the  outskirts  of  the  crowd.  The 
speaker,  now  seen  at  close  range,  was  a  tall,  well- 
built  man,  with  a  strong,  kindly  face.  He  spoke 
clearly  and  eloquently,  and  with  graceful,  ex- 
pressive gestures.  He  had  caught  something  of 
the  style  so  natural  and  pleasing  to  an  Oriental, 
and  used  a  wealth  of  imagery  and  illustration 
in  his  fluent  speech.  At  first,  Mukerji  listened 
rather  carelessly.  Then  he  began  to  feel  the 
charm  of  the  preacher's  manner.  After  a  little, 
he  forgot  all  else  in  his  interest  in  what  was  being 
said. 

Perhaps  it  was  not  very  different  from  what 
he  had  heard  before.  But  he  was  in  a  new  mood, 
and  the  stranger  before  him  had  a  way  of  his  own 
in  handling  old  truths.  There  were  sentences 
in  the  long  address  that  took  hold  of  Satis  Kumar 
Mukerji  with  power,  and  he  never  forgot  them. 
It  seemed  as  though  the  preacher  was  reading 
his  life,  and  fitting  his  message  to  the  secret  long- 
ings and  aspirations  of  his  soul.  Although  it 
was  the  ornate  exuberance  of  the  missionary's 
style  that  first  charmed  him,  what  fastened  it- 
self most  powerfully  upon  him  was  rather  tersely 
and  plainly  spoken. 

"  My  brothers,"  said  the  man,  "  whatever  the 
philosophy  of  your  sages  may  say,  I  know  that 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  17 

you  are  men  with  loving  and  wounded  hearts 
which  cry  out  for  a  loving  God.  However  many 
and  noble  may  be  the  truths  enshrined  in  your 
sacred  literature,  or  embodied  in  your  religion, 
you  find  not  there  the  God  for  whom  your  heart 
hungers,  the  only  God  to  whom  you  can  commit 
your  dear  ones  at  death  in  the  hope  of  seeing 
them  again.  It  remained  for  the  Man  of  Galilee 
to  reveal  God  as  a  loving  Father,  and  for  the 
Christian  scriptures  to  declare,  t  God  is  love.' 
When  you  consider  how  distinctively  Christian 
that  revelation  is,  and  yet  how  universally  men 
long  for  such  comforting  assurance,  and  how 
naturally  they  respond  to  it,  need  you  wonder 
that  an  early  Christian  teacher,  the  good  Tertul- 
lian,  said  to  the  followers  of  other  religions, '  The 
soul  of  man  is  by  nature  Christian '?  " 

"  Ah,"  thought  Satis  Kumar,  "  is  it  not  true 
that  only  the  conception  of  such  a  God  has 
brought  peace  to  my  heart?  And  did  not  my 
friend  but  just  now  tell  me  that  if  I  wanted  to 
believe  in  such  things  I  could  find  support  for 
them  only  in  Christianity? " 

Carried  away  by  his  own  reflections,  he  did  not 
follow  the  speaker's  words  for  some  minutes. 
When  his  attention  was  again  arrested,  the 
preacher  was  setting  forth  what  would  be  some 


i8  FIRES  OF  DESIRE. 

of  the  practical  effects  of  a  general  acceptance 
of  Christianity  in  India. 

11  There  must  be  men  before  me  who  realize 
the  sad  condition  of  India  after  long  centuries 
of  adherence  to  Hinduism.  Those  of  you  who 
have  drunk  in  the  new  spirit  of  social  and  politi- 
cal reform  must  see  how  impotent  both  philo- 
sophical and  popular  Hinduism  are  for  the  reno- 
vation of  India.  If  you  are  finding  that  your 
religion  cannot  do  what  is  least,  why  will  you 
trust  it  with  the  greater  task  of  spiritual  regen- 
eration? And  as  for  the  accomplishment  of  the 
lesser  work — let  me  ask  you  what  you  think 
would  be  the  result  of  a  widespread  adoption 
of  the  Christian  religion  in  this  land?  It  is  not 
easy  for  you  to  answer  that  question  impartially. 
Your  pride,  your  prejudices,  and  many  nobler 
qualities  make  it  difficult  for  you  candidly  to 
estimate  the  value  of  this  religion.  It  has  come 
to  you  in  a  strange  Western  garb.  Its  adherents 
are  your  conquerors,  and  many  of  them  have 
been  sorry  exponents  of  the  meek  and  lowly 
;Jesus.  Yet  did  it  take  its  rise  in  an  Eastern 
land.  Nor  has  it  lacked  among  you  representa- 
tives whose  lives  have  adorned  the  doctrine  of 
their  Saviour.  Something  of  its  revivifying 
power  has  been  felt  throughout  this  empire. 
Much  of  its  holy  precepts,  and  of  the  spotless 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE.  19 

life  of  its  Founder  are  known  to  all  you  educated 
men.  I  ask  you  now  to  leave  aside  all  questions 
of  philosophy  and  theology.  Forget,  for  a  time, 
the  lives  of  all  professed  Christians.  Remember 
only  that  to  be  a  Christian  is  to  be  like  Christ. 
Then  seriously  face  this  question,  and  do  not  leave 
it  until  you  have  intelligently  answered  it :  'If 
with  the  rising  of  to-morrow's  sun  every  man  and 
woman  in  Calcutta  and  in  all  India  were  to  be- 
gin earnestly  to  try  to  be  like  Jesus  Christ,  what 
would  it  mean  for  this  city  and  for  this  country? ' 
And  when  you  have  answered  that  question,  then 
tell  yourself,  <  That  is  what  it  would  ultimately 
mean  for  India  to  accept  Christianity.' ' 

With  an  impassioned  peroration,  the  man 
closed  his  address.  Darkness  had  fallen  while 
he  was  speaking.  Flocks  of  crows  had  come 
noisily  to  the  tree  branches  above  the  heads  of 
the  crowd,  and  had  taken  shelter  for  the  night. 
A  man  had  lighted  the  two  big  gas  lamps  be- 
fore the  entrance  of  the  square.  Cab  lanterns 
were  flashing  to  and  fro.  The  loud  calls  of 
drivers  of  bullock  carts,  and  of  footmen  perched 
behind  carriages  were  heard  above  the  rumble 
of  wheels  through  the  crowded  street. 

The  throng  of  students  and  older  men  had 
stood  and  listened  patiently  to  the  long  address. 
Bengalis  are  listeners  rather  than  readers;  they 


20  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

love  the  open  air  rather  than  an  assembly  hall; 
they  have  a  keen  appreciation  of  oratory ;  withal, 
they  are  patient  creatures.  When  the  lecture 
ended,  a  spontaneous  nmrmur_of  approval  ran 
through  the  crowd,  and  there  was  some  clapping 
of  hands.  Not  a  few  men  went  to  the  speaker  and 
thanked  him  for  what  he  had  said.  Then  they 
went  their  ways,  most  of  them  to  worship  the 
divinities  whose  shrines  they  passed,  and  to  think 
no  more  of  what  they  had  heard  with  so  much 
attention  and  approval. 

Mr.  Mukerji  stayed  until  the  missionary  was 
ready  to  leave  the  square.  Then  he  stepped  up 
to  him  and  spoke. 

"  Sir,  I  have  heard  your  eloquent  lecture.  Per- 
mit me  to  thank  you  for  it.  I  would  speak  with 
you  further  upon  the  subjects  you  so  ably  dis- 
cussed. My  carriage  is  here;  if  you  will  do  me 
the  honor  to  let  me  drive  you  to  your  home,  we 
can  talk  by  the  way." 

The  preacher  gladly  assented.  Mukerji  sig- 
naled to  his  coachman.  The  heavy  carriage, 
drawn  by  two  magnificent  black  horses,  and  at- 
tended by  four  richly  liveried  servants,  came  to 
the  curb.  The  two  men  stepped  in  and  were 
whirled  rapidly  away. 

Of  that  night's  conversation,  and  all  that  grew 
out  of  it,  there  is  no  need  now  to  speak  particu- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  21 

larly.  Richard  Clifford  was  a  rare  man.  Be- 
fore the  drive  ended,  the  Bengali  had  come  to 
respect  and  admire  him.  Although  he  had  been 
in  India  but  a  short  time,  and  had  come  to  the 
capital  only  very  recently,  he  was  not  unfamiliar 
with  the  conditions  existing  there.  By  long 
years  of  diligent  study,  he  had  prepared  himself 
for  work  among  educated  Indians.  Added  to 
that,  he  possessed  uncommon  tact  in  dealing 
with  men.  There  was  also  in  his  nature  a  deep 
vein  of  mysticism  which  fitted  him  for  his  chosen 
work.  It  all  helped  him  to  do  that  night  what 
any  veteran  missionary  in  the  empire  would  have 
given  anything  he  possessed  for  the  joy  of  ac- 
complishing. When  Satis  Kumar  drove  away 
to  his  home,  the  seed  had  already  been  sown  that 
bore  its  fruit  a  few  months  later  in  the  public 
baptism  of  the  noble  Brahmin. 

Unconsciously,  Mukerji  had  been  approaching 
such  a  step  for  years.  His  daily  prayer  to  be 
led  from  darkness  to  light,  and  from  unreality 
to  reality  had  been  sincere  and  earnest.  His 
deep  love  for  the  God  who  had  somehow  revealed 
Himself  to  him  as  the  God  of  love,  had  become 
the  inspiration  of  his  life.  His  desire  to  help  his 
fellow-countrymen  to  the  highest  and  best  was 
no  empty  sentiment.  For  years  he  had  sought 
in  vain  within  the  pale  of  Hinduism  for  new 


22  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

religious  light,  and  effective  social  reformation. 
When  he  was  finally  convinced  that  in  Chris- 
tianity alone  could  he  find  his  God  fully  revealed, 
and  that  from  it  alone  could  be  derived  the  power 
for  India's  renovation,  there  was  but  one  thing 
for  him  to  do. 

It  was  not  easy  for  the  proud  Brahmin  to 
come  to  his  decision.  But  after  the  battle  with 
his  pride  and  prejudices  was  won,  it  was  com- 
paratively easy  for  him  to  carry  his  resolution 
into  effect.  There  was  no  irate  father  to  dis- 
inherit him ;  no  frantic  wife  or  mother  to  threaten 
to  commit  suicide;  no  angry  employer  to  cut  off 
his  income.  True,  the  influential  men  of  his 
community  came  clamoring  about  him  when  they 
heard  what  he  proposed  to  do.  Every  argument 
and  other  means  at  their  command,  whether  fair 
or  foul,  they  freely  used  to  prevent  his  disgrac- 
ing himself  and  them. 

To  the  Hindus  it  mattered  nothing  that 
Mukerji  had  practised  but  few  of  the  rites  of 
their  religion  for  years  past.  Nor  was  it  any 
cause  of  annoyance  to  them  that  it  was  publicly 
known  how  little  respect  he  had  long  entertained 
for  theiri  doctrines  and  ceremonies.  That  in 
thought  and  purpose  he  had  shown  himself  practi- 
cally Christian,  and  had  even  disregarded  many 
of  the  regulations  of  caste,  distressed  nobody. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  23 

Such  things  were  common  enough  in  the  metropo- 
lis. So  long  as  a  man  observed  the  more  im- 
portant rules  of  caste,  and  was  not  actually 
baptized,  he  might  believe  and  say  and  do  what 
he  liked.  But  for  a  leading  member  of  the  com- 
munity, and  a  man  known  throughout  the 
land,  to  be  baptized — that  was  another  matter. 
Mukerji,  however,  put  all  objections  and  object- 
ors gently  but  firmly  aside,  and  went  his  own 
way. 

So  the  ceremony  had  taken  place.  It  was  a 
glad  day  for  the  Christians,  both  native  and 
European.  A  throng  witnessed  the  simple  and 
impressive  ceremony.  Mukerji's  child,  then  a 
pretty,  gentle  girl  of  fifteen,  was  received  into 
the  Church  along  with  her  father.  Kichard 
Clifford  seemed  transfigured  as  he  administered 
the  sacred  rite.  There  was  a  look  of  joyous  ex- 
altation on  the  noble  face  of  Satis  Kumar  as 
he  thus  passed  from  Hinduism  into  the  Church  of 
Christ. 

After  that,  many  things  had  happened.  The 
storm  raised  by  Mukerji's  act  raged  fiercely  for 
a  short  time,  but  it  soon  passed.  The  conversion 
of  even  the  highest  caste  men  to  Christianity 
was  not  so  uncommon  as  it  had  once  been;  the 
less  there  was  said  about  it  the  better.  The  man 
went  on  with  his  daily  life  much  as  he  had  be- 


24  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

fore,  only  cut  off  from  a  certain  amount  of  social 
intercourse  with  his  old  co-religionists. 

It  soon  became  apparent,  though,  that  he  in- 
tended to  make  every  atom  of  his  influence  and 
wealth  aid  the  new  cause  he  had  espoused.  He 
became  an  active  propagandist  among  his  friends. 
In  his  own  grounds,  he  built  a  church  upon  Corn- 
wallis  Street.  He  had  Clifford  and  his  wife 
move  into  a  part  of  his  mansion.  Then  the  two 
men  began  in  the  city  a  work  that  told  mightily 
for  the  cause  they  loved. 

At  Christmas-tide  the  Indian  National  Con- 
gress, that  remarkable  deliberative  assembly 
which  calls  together  so  many  of  the  ablest  sons  of 
India,  held  its  annual  meeting  in  Calcutta.  Al- 
though he  said  nothing  about  religion  upon  its 
platform,  Mukerji's  address  when  introducing  a 
resolution  on  the  Betterment  of  the  Agricultural 
and  Laboring  Classes,  was  so  filled  with  passion- 
ate earnestness  and  enthusiasm,  that  those  who 
had  often  listened  to  his  eloquent  orations  before, 
realized  that  a  new  man  was  speaking  to  them. 
That  same  night,  after  the  Congress  adjourned, 
there  was  a  meeting  in  the  Cornwallis  Street 
chapel,  and  Mukerji  addressed  a  great  audience 
of  his  fellow-countrymen.  Before  the  meeting 
closed,  five  well-known  men  and  several  students 
publicly  announced  their  determination  to  follow 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  25 

their  gifted  brother  into  the  new  life.  Calcutta 
was  beginning  to  be  shaken  to  the  very  center. 
It  seemed  that  at  last  India's  Paul  or  Luther 
had  arisen.  Men  began  to  dare  hope  that  soon 
all  India  would  be  moving — the  Hindus  towards 
Christianity,  and  the  Christians  towards  a  united, 
national  Church. 

Then  it  all  suddenly  came  to  an  end.  Satis 
Kumar  had  been  away  from  home  addressing  a 
meeting  of  educated  Hindus  at  Burdwan.  It  was 
the  cool  season,  and  he  had  been  drenched  by  an 
unexpected  rain,  after  being  overheated  by  long 
speaking.  A  severe  chill  followed,  and  next  day 
he  was  quite  ill.  As  soon  as  possible  he  was  taken 
to  his  home.  There  he  grew  rapidly  worse.  He 
was  not  an  old  man,  but,  like  most  Bengalis,  he 
had  begun  to  age  rather  early,  and  was  no  longer 
robust.  In  spite  of  the  best  medical  attendance 
that  the  city  could  afford,  it  was  soon  evident 
that  he  could  not  recover.  Thus  it  was  that  when 
the  nine-thirty  gun  boomed  out  over  the  city 
that  night,  Satis  Kumar  Mukerji  lay  dying. 
And  many  high  hopes  were  perishing  with 
him. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Clifford,  and  the  dying  man's 
daughter  were  near  his  bedside.  The  doctor 
and  nurse  were  in  attendance  upon  him.  He 
seemed  to  be  peacefully  sleeping.  The  minutes 


26  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

glided  away.  They  heard  the  clock  upon  the 
Presidency  College  strike  eleven. 

"  I  think,"  said  the  doctor,  "  he  will  probably 
come  out  of  this  stupor  before  he  goes,  and  be 
able  to  speak  with  you." 

The  distant,  deep-toned  bell  on  St.  John's 
Church  had  taken  up  the  refrain,  and  was  slowly 
sounding  out  the  hour.  The  sick  man  sighed 
deeply,  and  opened  his  eyes.  In  a  moment  he 
seemed  to  understand  where  he  was.  He  smiled 
up  at  the  watchers  about  the  bed.  Then  he  held 
out  his  hand  to  his  daughter,  and  she  went  and 
sat  upon  the  bed  by  his  pillow.  For  a  moment  his 
eyes  closed,  and  he  seemed  to  be  slipping  off 
again  into  unconsciousness.  But  he  soon  rallied, 
and  after  one  or  two  efforts,  began  to  speak. 
Halting  was  his  utterance,  but  quite  distinct. 

"  I  shall  be  going  soon,  friends,"  he  said  in  his 
feeble  voice.  "  Mrs.  Clifford,  I  leave  my  dear 
child  to  you.  Be  very  tender  to  my  orphan 
girl.  My  will  disposes  of  my  property.  It  is 
all  for  my  daughter  and  my  Saviour.  You  will 
see  that  I  want  our  work  here  to  go  on.  The 
time  that  is  passed  suffices  for  this  beautiful 
place  to  have  sheltered  what  deeds  of  dark  super- 
stition I  know  not,  and  to  have  served  only  the 
selfish  ends  of  its  owners.  You  must  stay  here, 
my  friends.  Do  not  disregard  my  wishes." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  27 

The  dying  man  was  exhausted  by  the  effort 
of  speaking.  The  doctor  administered  a  cordial 
to  rally  his  waning  powers.  He  was  soon  able  to 
resume  his  parting  words. 

"  It  was  a  sad  disappointment  to  me  when  I 
found  I  must  die.  There  is  so  much  to  do;  our 
work  was  opening  so  grandly  before  us.  How  I 
longed  to  stay  and  work  for  my  Lord,  and  my 
unhappy  country.  The  regret  is  past  now  and  I 
am  happy.  To-night  my  Lord  stood  by  my  bed, 
where  you  are  now,  Mr.  Clifford.  His  face  was 
full  of  love,  and  he  took  my  hand  in  his,  so  ten- 
derly. Then  he  began  to  speak  to  me. 

"  l  Dear  one/  said  my  Saviour,  '  do  you  sorrow 
to  leave  your  work?  Do  you  fancy  that  your  ser- 
vice for  me  is  to  close?  Let  not  your  heart  be 
troubled  thus,  for  I  will  show  you  what  things  are 
soon  to  be.' 

"  With  that  He  softly  came  to  my  pillow,  where 
you  now  are,  Daughter,"  the  man  went  on  in 
his  labored  way.  "  So  did  He  lift  me  up  until 
my  head  rested  upon  His  breast.  I  felt  as  if  I 
•were  a  little  child  again,  with  my  dear  mother. 

" '  Look,'  said  my  Lord,  and  He  pointed  far 
away. 

"  As  I  looked  I  beheld  a  beautiful  country,  like 
unto  the  celestial  land  we  read  of  in  God's  Book. 
Many  shining  ones  were  there  who  hymned  the 


28  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

praises  of  the  Most  High;  many,  too,  who  sped 
forth  as  ministering  spirits  to  do  His  bidding. 
But  the  scene  changed  while  I  gazed.  I  beheld 
a  great  multitude  of  my  fellow-countrymen,  amid 
the  green  pastures  and  by  the  water-brooks  of 
that  fair  country.  But  they  seemed  not  to  shine 
as  did  the  hosts  about  the  throne.  Nor  seemed 
they  able  to  respond  to  the  call  for  messengers  to 
speed  away  over  sea  and  land  to  do  the  Great 
King's  behests. 

"  At  that  sight  I  was  sad,  and  I  cried,  '  Ah, 
my  Saviour,  are  my  people  less  favored  than 
others,  even  in  this  heavenly  country?  ' 

"  '  Nay,'  said  the  Blessed  One.  '  For  many  are 
standing  with  the  shining  ones  about  the  throne. 
Even  these  enjoy  all  the  bliss  of  which  their  souls 
are  capable.  These  are  thy  people  who  have 
passed  the  portals  of  death,  knowing  not  Me  nor 
My  Father,  yet  true  to  all  the  light  they  had.  Or 
others  are  thy  brethren,  who  as  babes  in  the  faith, 
have  come  hither  with  little  knowledge  and  small 
attainments.' 

"  With  that,  methought  this  room  did  rock 
and  shake.  Then  a  Voice,  mighty  as  crash  of 
many  thunders,  sounded  in  mine  ears. 

"  '  Whom  shall  I  send,  and  who  will  go  to  lead 
these  My  little  ones  up  to  the  heights  of  holy 
knowledge  and  adoring  love?  Who  will  fit  them 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  29 

to  stand  with  joy  before  My  throne,  and  to  fly, 
or  near  or  far,  to  do  My  will?  ' 

"  Then  cried  I,  '  Oh,  my  Lord,  send  me,  for 
they  are  mine  own  people  whom  I  love! ' 

"  '  So  shall  it  be,'  the  Voice  replied. 

"  All  was  quiet  once  more.  The  vision  faded 
quite  away.  But  the  Lord  remained,  with  my 
head  upon  His  breast. 

" i  How  now,  My  child? '    He  softly  asked. 

"  I  gladly  cried,  '  It  is  well.  Now  let  Thy  ser- 
vant depart  in  peace.' 

"  So,  my  dear  ones,  I  have  awakened  to  tell  you 
good-bye.  You  will  stay  to  continue  the  work 
here.  My  Master  has  called  me  to  higher  service, 
and  gladly  do  I  go." 

The  clocks  of  the  city  were  tolling  the  hour  of 
midnight,  when  Satis  Kumar  Mukerji  passed  to 
be  with  his  God  in  the  land  of  the  higher  serv- 
ice. None  looked  upon  that  dead  face  ere  he  was 
laid  to  rest  next  day,  who  did  not  see  plainly 
stamped  upon  it  the  peace  which  passeth  under- 
standing. And  the  daughter  and  her  friends 
went  back  to  their  home  with  spirits  chastened 
by  a  sorrow  that  was  full  of  holy  joy. 


30  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


DAYS  OF   DECISION 

MRS.  STANTON  was  a  widow,  and  Frank  was 
her  only  child.  The  income  from  her  husband's 
estate  was  sufficient  to  keep  her  and  her  boy  above 
want  and  care.  They  lived  quietly  in  their  com- 
fortable home  on  Broadway,  in  Lexington,  Ken- 
tucky, attended  by  two  negro  servants,  who  had 
grown  up  in  the  family.  Like  most  of  the  dwell- 
ers in  that  good  city  and  commonwealth,  the 
widow  and  her  boy  were  free  from  the  feverish 
hurry  and  worry  which  spoil  the  lives  of  men  and 
women  in  more  northern  and  less  favored  lati- 
tudes. To  enjoy  what  they  had,  to  show  kindness 
to  others,  to  live  together  in  mutual  respect  and 
love — such  seemed  to  be  the  good  rule  of  these 
two,  and  of  many  of  their  fellow-citizens. 

Frank  was  devoted  to  his  mother.  Never 
through  the  long  years  of  the  widowhood  that 
had  left  her  his  sole  guardian,  had  he  caused  her 
serious  anxiety.  True,  his  boyhood  days  had 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE.  31 

not  been  free  from  a  full  share  of  arboreal  and 
aquatic  proclivities,  terrifying  to  maternal  in- 
stincts. More  than  once  the  good  lady  had  been 
filled  with  fear  when  her  son  came  home  soaked 
from  a  tumble  into  some  pond,  or  bruised  by  a 
too  precipitate  descent  from  a  tree.  Even  the 
painful  contortions  caused  by  surreptitious  feasts 
upon  stolen  sweets  in  the  shape  of  sour  apples 
and  green  water-melons,  were  not  without  their 
element  of  apprehension  to  the  mother  of  an  only 
child.  But  such  things  add  a  dash  of  spice  to 
life,  and  let  a  woman  know  that  she  is  the 
mother  of  a  real  boy. 

The  lad  passed  a  happy  boyhood.  From  the 
public  schools  he  had  gone  into  college.  Mrs. 
Stanton  was  thankful  that  her  native  city  pos- 
sessed such  colleges  as  to  make  it  unnecessary 
for  her  boy  to  go  away  from  home.  At  the  age 
of  twenty,  Frank  graduated  with  honors.  It  was 
the  mother's  ambition  that  her  son  should  be  a 
minister.  To  that  end  she  had  wisely  and  un- 
obtrusively labored  all  his  life.  At  the  proper 
time  she  had  let  him  know  of  her  wish,  without 
pressing  him  for  an  answer.  Not  until  after  his 
graduation  did  the  question  come  up  for  serious 
discussion.  Then  it  was  not  long  until  he  came 
to  a  decision. 

"  Mother,"  said  the  young  man  suddenly  one 


32  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

evening  as  they  sat  together  in  the  veranda, 
"  if  I  am  to  be  a  parson  I  must  go  to  some  semi- 
nary for  theological  training.  Where  shall  I 
go?" 

"  Have  you  decided  to  enter  the  ministry, 
Frank?  "  asked  the  mother. 

"  Yes,  Mother,  if  I  can  fit  myself  for  it." 

Mrs.  Stanton  went  to  her  boy,  and  sat  on  the 
broad  arm  of  his  chair.  Brushing  the  hair  back 
from  his  forehead,  she  kissed  him. 

"  My  boy,"  she  said  softly,  "  how  happy  you 
make  me.  And  the  best  of  it  is  that  you  have  a 
higher  motive  in  this  than  pleasing  your  mother." 

Long  and  earnestly  they  talked  together  of  the 
best  way  to  carry  the  resolution  into  effect.  The 
young  man  had  already  consulted  his  pastor  and 
several  of  his  old  professors.  His  course  had 
been  decided  upon,  subject  to  the  veto  or  approval 
of  his  mother.  He  wanted  to  go  north,  and  finish 
his  training  in  a  wholly  new  environment. 

"  You  see,  Mother,"  he  argued,  "  a  minister 
needs  to  know  all  sorts  of  people,  and  all  schools 
of  thought.  Here  I've  lived  in  this  dear,  sleepy, 
old  place  all  my  life.  So  I  know  the  south  very 
well." 

Assenting  to  the  wisdom  of  this,  the  widow 
asked  what  part  of  the  north  he  thought  best 
suited  to  his  needs. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  33 

"  Well,"  he  replied,  "  next  to  the  South,  we 
know  the  East  best,  as  we  have  spent  so  many  of 
our  vacations  there.  I  believe  I  better  try  a  semi- 
nary in  the  West.  I  suppose  the  Middle  West  is 
the  most  representative  and  vigorous  part  of  this 
country,  anyway,  in  spite  of  all  the  easterners 
and  southerners  may  say  against  it." 

"What  particular  spot  of  that  favored  region 
have  you  decided  on?  "  asked  the  lady. 

"  Chicago."  Then,  seeing  the  look  on  his 
mother's  face — "Don't  be  shocked,  Mother;  I 
really  believe  it's  the  best  place  for  me." 

"  I  had  never  thought  of  the  Windy  City  as  a 
center  of  culture,  and  especially  of  religious  cul- 
ture," she  answered  with  a  quiet  smile. 

"  No  doubt  it  is  a  big  noisy  place,  full  of 
materialism  and  wickedness,"  the  young  man  ad- 
mitted. "  Perhaps  it  has  grown  so  fast,  and 
feels  so  strong,  and  is  made  up  of  such  a  mixed 
multitude,  that  it  is  like  an  overgrown  boy,  full 
of  awkwardness,  and  badly  governed  passions, 
and  self-importance.  But  I  am  told  that  it  has 
more  theological  seminaries  than  any  other  city 
in  the  world.  They  are  up  to  date  and  thorough 
too.  Besides,  the  very  things  that  make  it  so 
different  from  our  world  are  what  will  make  it 
valuable  for  me." 

Confessing  that  she  knew  little  about  the  city 


34  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

and  its  advantages,  Mrs.  Stanton  resumed  her 
seat,  and  expressed  her  willingness  to  be  con- 
vinced. 

Young  Stanton  had  his  facts  and  authorities 
ready.  It  was  no  difficult  task  to  persuade  his 
mother  that  Chicago  was  the  best  place  for  him. 
When  he  clinched  all  his  arguments  by  telling 
that  their  pastor  had  been  the  first  to  recommend 
and  urge  his  going  there,  Mrs.  Stanton  said  she 
was  perfectly  satisfied  to  have  it  so.  It  was 
therefore  settled  that  he  should  go  to  Chicago 
and  enter  the  seminary  that  fall. 

Two  weeks  later,  the  mother  and  son  were  sit- 
ting together  at  breakfast  one  morning,  address- 
ing themselves  to  the  piping  hot  biscuits  and 
strong  coffee  wherein  the  hearts  of  Kentuckians 
rejoice. 

Mrs.  Stanton  slipped  a  lump  of  golden  yellow 
butter  between  the  two  halves  of  a  biscuit,  and 
waited  for  it  to  melt  properly. 

"  Son,  do  you  know  what  I  have  decided  to 
do?"  she  asked. 

"  I  give  it  up,  Mother,"  he  promptly  rejoined. 

"  Well,  you  don't  try  very  hard  to  guess  my 
riddles,"  she  said.  "  I  am  going  to  rent  apart- 
ments in  Chicago,  and  keep  house  for  you  while 
you  study  theology  and  human  nature." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  35 

Frank's  cup  was  set  down  suddenly,  and  rather 
hard. 

"  Mother,  you  don't  mean  it?  "  he  cried. 

"  Oh,  but  I  do,  and  our  flat  is  already  engaged," 
she  assured  him. 

"  What  a  dear  little  Mother  you  are,  to  be  sure. 
I've  been  wondering  how  I'd  ever  get  along  up 
there  without  you."  And  he  had  to  get  up  and 
go  kiss  his  mother  before  he  could  resume  his 
breakfast. 

It  was  as  the  lady  had  said.  She  had  decided 
that  her  boy  would  need  her.  Most  certain  she 
was  that  she  needed  him.  A  little  inquiry  re- 
vealed that  she  could  get  a  furnished  flat  near 
the  seminary,  easily  within  her  means.  The 
Lexington  house  could  be  left  in  the  care  of  one 
trusty  servant ;  the  other  could  accompany  them. 
So  she  had  quietly  arranged  to  go  with  her  son. 
For  the  joy  of  being  with  him,  all  the  inconven- 
ience and  expense  involved  were  counted  as  noth- 
ing. 

The  Stantons  set  out  for  Chicago  early  in 
September.  When  the  seminary  began  its  year's 
work,  they  were  comfortably  settled,  and  Frank 
was  ready  and  eager  for  his  new  duties. 

The  young  Kentuckian  was  a  noble  specimen 
of  manhood — tall,  broad-shouldered,  with  finely- 
shaped  head,  dark  hair,  clear  gray  eyes,  and  in- 


36  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

tellectual  forehead,  and  a  mouth  and  chin  indica- 
tive of  strength  of  character.  To  such  physicial 
qualities  were  added  a  genial  disposition,  and  an 
air  of  good  breeding  that  made  the  young  man  a 
general  favorite  everywhere. 

His  ability  and  industry  soon  enabled  him  to 
take  high  rank  in  the  seminary.  There  wrere  few 
southerners  among  the  men,  and  no  others  from 
the  far-famed.  Blue  Grass  Region  of  Kentucky. 
Frank's  southern  accent  and  manners  charmed 
by  their  novelty.  If  the  men  about  him  could 
teach  him  something  of  the  rough  and  ready  ways 
of  the  West,  they  could  also  learn  with  profit 
much  from  him  of  the  easy  grace  of  a  man  ac- 
customed to  move  in  social  circles  where  rough 
corners  and  sharp  angularities  had  long  since 
been  banished  by  a  quiet  life  in  a  genial  climate. 
So  Stanton  fitted  easily  into  his  new  life.  He 
liked  his  fellow-students,  and  they  warmly  re- 
turned his  regard. 

On  the  whole,  Mrs.  Stanton  also  enjoyed  her- 
self. She  missed  the  old  home  and  friends.  But 
their  quarters  were  comfortable;  pleasant  ac- 
quaintances were  formed  at  the  church  where  she 
worshiped,  and,  above  all,  she  was  with  her  boy, 
and  interested  in  his  work.  Almost  every  after- 
noon they  walked  by  the  lake  side  through  the 
beautiful  park  that  lay  along  the  shore.  Whether 


'Walked  leisurely  together, — the  gray-haired  little  woman,  by  the 
side  of  the  tall,  stalwart  young  man — " 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  37 

the  noble  Michigan  was  sleeping  placidly  under 
the  rosy  light  of  a  fair  sunset,  or  lashed  into 
foaming  fury  by  the  keen  northwestern  wind, 
they  loved  it.  As  they  walked  leisurely  together, 
or  sat  looking  out  over  the  water — the  gray- 
haired  little  woman,  by  the  side  of  the  tall,  stal- 
wart young  man — they  made  a  pretty  picture. 

The  lady  cared  little  for  the  noisy  city,  though 
it  was  not  within  the  power  of  her  feminine  heart 
to  resist  the  attractions  of  the  wonderful  shops. 
But  its  mad  rush  after  money,  its  crude  gayeties, 
its  heterogeneous  mixture  of  raw  foreign  ele- 
ments, its  open  and  unblushing  wickedness,  all 
confused  her,  and  made  her  instinctively  shrink 
from  them.  Her  own  little  city  had  its  bad 
qualities,  no  doubt,  but  they  were  less  obtrusive, 
and  preserved  what  semblance  of  gentility  they 
could.  If  her  son  thought  it  would  the  better  fit 
him  for  his  calling  to  come  into  contact  with  all 
this,  and  make  a  study  of  it,  she  did  not  object. 
For  her  part,  she  would  avoid  it  as  much  as  pos- 
sible. However,  both  she  and  her  son  found  that 
even  amid  such  surroundings,  the  kindly  light  of  a 
genuine  culture,  and  the  genial  warmth  of  a 
sterling  righteousness  were  kept  aglow  in  many 
hearts  and  homes.  When  they  met  such,  they  ap- 
preciated it  all  the  more  because  they  realized 
how  strongly  the  currents  set  in  other  directions. 


38  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Time  flies  rapidly  for  the  student  with  his  daily 
and  hourly  duties.  It  seemed  to  Frank  Stanton 
impossible  that  he  had  been  in  Chicago  three 
years,  when  the  day  came  for  him  to  receive  his 
degree  and  leave  the  seminary.  He  was  not  sorry 
that  the  hour  for  the  real  business  of  life  to  begin 
had  arrived.  Practically  all  his  life  had  been 
passed  in  school  and  college  and  university.  He 
had  now  reached  his  twenty-fourth  year,  and  was 
anxious  to  get  to  work.  Yet  the  years  had  been 
most  pleasant  and  profitable.  His  comfortable 
home,  his  congenial  studies  and  companions,  his 
interest  in  the  great  city,  his  frequent  opportuni- 
ties to  preach  during  the  last  year  of  his  course, 
and,  withal,  the  delightful  vacations  spent  with 
old  friends  in  his  native  town,  had  all  conspired 
to  fill  the  three  years  with  a  healthy  enjoyment. 
He  stepped  out  into  the  world  with  a  warm  ap- 
preciation of  the  good  things  that  had  been  his 
in  the  past,  and  with  no  fears  for  the  future. 

Of  several  openings  before  him,  Stanton  had 
chosen  an  assistant  pastorate  in  an  "  Open 
Church  "  in  a  needy  down-town  district  of  Chi- 
cago. He  had  become  well  acquainted  with  the 
pastor  and  the  work  during  his  seminary  course. 
The  difficulties  and  possibilities  appealed  to  the 
generous  and  heroic  impulses  of  youth.  There 
was  nothing  morbid,  perhaps  nothing  very  pro- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  39 

found,  in  his  religious  life.  Never  had  he  known 
any  serious  sorrow  or  care.  Little  in  the  way 
of  strong  temptation  had  ever  assailed  him.  His 
had  been  a  sheltered  life.  As  far  as  they  went,  his 
faith  and  piety  were  genuine.  That  they  went 
no  further  than  they  did  was  little  fault  of  his, 
for  that  which  is  natural  is  first,  and  afterwards 
that  which  is  spiritual.  His  time  of  testing  was 
yet  to  come ;  not  until  then  could  his  religion  be- 
come intensely  personal  and  vital. 

It  is  the  storm  that  makes  the  oak  strike  its 
roots  deep,  and  grip  hard  upon  the  mountain 
side.  Adam  was  probably  more  of  a  man  -after 
his  fall  and  banishment  from  Eden  than  before. 
Prior  to  his  temptation  he  had  the  innocence  of 
a  babe;  afterwards,  whatever  virtue  he  retained 
or  regained,  was  the  virile  power  of  a  man.  At 
least,  humanity's  fall  has  been,  in  part,  an  up- 
ward fall.  What  would  overtake  Stanton  in 
later  days  would  do  its  work,  and  leave  its  im- 
.  press.  Meanwhile,  he  had  an  honest  desire  to  do 
good  service  under  his  Captain,  and  a  healthy 
young  man's  ambition  to  make  the  world  better 
by  helping  up  those  wTho  were  down.  So  the  call 
to  the  "  Open  Church  "  attracted  him,  and  he  ac- 
cepted it. 

Mrs.  Stanton  decided  to  return  to  Lexington. 
There  were  many  reasons  for  her  doing  so.  Her 


40  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

property  there  needed  her  attention.  Life  could 
not  be  very  comfortable  for  her  in  the  midst  of 
the  city  where  her  son  would  have  to  live,  for  it 
was  best  for  his  work  that  he  make  his  home  with 
the  pastor  who  lived  next  door  to  the  church. 
Above  all,  the  mother  knew  that  her  son  was  now 
a  man,  and  did  not  need  her  as  he  had  in  the  more 
formative  period  of  his  life.  Had  there  been  no 
more  serious  obstacle  in  the  way  than  her  own 
physical  discomfort,  she  would  undoubtedly  have 
remained;  but  it  seemed  best  for  him  and  his 
work  for  her  to  go.  It  would  not  be  like  having 
him  in  a  place  she  had  never  seen.  She  could  shut 
her  eyes  and  see  his  rooms,  his  church,  his  as- 
sociates. She  could  know  just  what  he  was  doing 
at  most  hours  of  the  day  or  night.  Such  things 
are  no  small  comfort  to  a  mother.  She  was 
lonely,  but  not  unhappy  after  her  return  home. 
She  well  knew  that  for  more  reasons  than  one, 
Frank  would  spend  all  the  time  he  could  in  Lex- 
ington. 

The  church  soon  felt  the  influence  of  the  new 
life  and  enthusiasm  that  the  young  man  brought 
to  it.  The  pastor  was  an  able  and  devoted  man, 
of  superb  executive  skill,  and  wide  experience. 
He  knew  and  loved  the  people  of  the  community. 
His  workers  were  well-organized  and  efficient 
The  church  had  long  been  a  veritable  hive  of 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  41 

industry,  with  its  numerous  social  and  religious 
meetings,  its  reading  room  and  night  classes,  its 
gymnasium  and  out-door  sports,  and  its  preven- 
tive and  reformatory  enterprises,  prosecuted 
throughout  the  district.  But  its  pastor  was  not 
a  fresh  and  inspiring  preacher. 

Stanton  supplied  that  lack.  It  soon  came  about 
that  he  conducted  nearly  all  the  evangelistic 
services.  He  possessed  the  southerner's  natural 
gift  of  oratory,  which  had  been  developed  by 
much  experience  in  public  speaking.  His  ser- 
mons were  strong  and  tender.  They  took  hold  of 
people,  and  drew  crowded  houses.  The  one  thing 
the  church  had  most  sadly  lacked  was  supplied. 
The  pastor  and  workers  were  delighted.  Stanton 
soon  felt  thoroughly  at  home,  and  very  happy  in 
his  work. 

Why  is  there  not  a  special  Providence  ever 
at  hand  in  this  world  whose  duty  it  is  to  see  that 
a  man  is  let  alone  when  he  is  happy,  and  safe  and 
useful?  Well,  why  does  not  the  mother  bird  leave 
her  fledglings  in  the  nest  where  they  are  com- 
fortable and  out  of  danger?  Perhaps  the  birds 
know  why  when  they  feel  the  buoyant  air  about 
them  and  soar  to  the  sky  on  joyful  wing. 

Stanton  was  not  long  to  continue  his  Chicago 
work.  There  was  an  urgent  and  persistent  call 
for  foreign  missionaries.  For  several  years  the 


42  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Foreign  Board  had  found  it  extremely  difficult  to 
get  a  sufficient  number  of  able  young  men  to 
enter  its  service.  The  society  had,  therefore,  re- 
solved upon  a  determined  effort  to  recruit  its 
ranks  for  China,  and  India,  and  Africa.  To 
create  enthusiasm,  and  to  influence  others  to 
volunteer,  strong  pressure  was  brought  to  bear 
upon  several  young  men  of  unusual  ability  and 
prominence.  Stanton  was  one  of  them. 

It  was  not  easy  for  him  to  decide  how  to  answer 
that  call.  But  the  same  qualities  in  him  that  had 
prompted  his  acceptance  of  the  invitation  to  the 
"  Open  Church  "  inclined  him  to  respond  to  the 
new  appeal  for  hard  service  elsewhere.  He  was 
wanted  as  a  yoke-fellow  for  Richard  Clifford  in 
Calcutta,  where  the  tasks  were  far  beyond  one 
man's  strength.  He  had  known  Clifford  in  col- 
lege, and  liked  him.  What  with  Clifford's  let- 
ters, and  the  appeals  from  the  secretaries,  and 
the  promptings  of  his  own  dauntless  spirit,  Frank 
could  not  long  hold  out.  The  church  would  re- 
lease him,  though  reluctantly.  If  all  could  be 
arranged  happily  in  Lexington,  he  could  give  a 
final  and  satisfactory  answer  to  the  Foreign 
Board. 

After  they  had  talked  matters  over  together 
the  evening  of  his  arrival  home,  the  little  mother 
had  a  battle  royal  with  her  own  heart.  She  had 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  43 

heard  all  his  statement  of  the  case,  had  read  the 
letters  from  Clifford  and  the  secretaries,  and  had 
listened  to  the  arguments  with  which  Frank 
had  convinced  himself,  and  sought  now  to  per- 
suade her.  Promising  to  give  her  answer  in  the 
morning,  she  kissed  him  good-night,  and  went  to 
her  room.  Then  for  long  hours  the  widow  sat 
before  her  fire.  There  was  little  sleep  for  her 
that  night,  but  much  prayer  and  many  tears. 

"  He  is  all  that  I  have,"  she  told  herself.  "  And 
I  am  getting  old.  This  pain  in  my  side,  too,  that 
the  doctor  says  is  from  my  heart — how  do  I  know 
what  may  happen  at  any  moment?  " 

As  she  looked  up  through  the  tears  of  her  self- 
pity,  she  saw  hanging  over  her  mantel,  the  picture 
of  Christ  in  Gethsemane.  It  made  her  think 
about  words  that  He  had  said  concerning  self- 
denial,  and  loss  of  life  for  His  sake. 

"  Is  this  my  Gethsemane,  Lord? "  she  said 
aloud.  "  If  it  is,  Thou  wilt  forgive  my  shrink- 
ing, I  know,  for  Thou  didst  draw  back  in  the  face 
of  Thy  great  trial." 

"  When  I  dedicated  my  boy  to  God,"  she  went 
on  to  herself,  "  and  did  all  that  I  could  to  interest 
him  in  the  work  of  the  Church,  I  did  not  know  it 
would  cost  me  this.  I  was  ready  for  anything 
but  this,  anything  but  this." 

Mrs.  Stanton  was  a  woman  of  an  unusually 


44  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

strong  religious  nature.  As  she  thought  and 
prayed  her  way  along  she  became  calmer.  When 
the  first  gray  glimmer  of  dawn  entered  her  east 
window,  she  had  the  light  of  victory  in  her  eyes. 
Before  she  lay  down  to  snatch  a  few  hours'  sleep, 
she  made  her  great  renunciation. 

"  O,  heavenly  Father,  he  who  was  counted 
worthy  to  be  called  the  friend  of  God,  withheld 
not  his  son,  his  only  son  whom  he  loved,  when 
Thou  didst  command  that  he  be  offered  up  to 
Thee.  And  when  Thou  didst  hearken  unto  the 
woman  of  a  sorrowful  spirit,  and  grant  her  a 
man-child,  she  did  not  draw  back  from  her  vow, 
though  it  meant  that  she  must  be  parted  from  her 
boy  when  he  was  but  a  little  child.  Thou,  Lord, 
didst  also  give  Thine  only  begotten  Son  to  die  for 
us  all.  Who,  then,  am  I  that  I  should  stretch 
forth  my  hand  to  withdraw  that  which  I  have  laid 
upon  Thine  altar?  Do  as  seemeth  best  in  Thy 
sight.  Only  let  the  hand  of  Thy  blessing  be  upon 
the  head  of  my  boy,  day  and  night." 

At  their  late  breakfast,  Mrs.  Stanton  appeared 
much  as  usual.  When  the  meal  was  over,  she  and 
Frank  sat  down  by  the  library  fire  for  their  final 
talk  on  the  subject  upon  their  hearts.  She  told 
him  little  of  the  battle,  but  spoke  at  length  of 
the  victory  of  the  night  before.  There  was  no 
sufficient  reason  for  her  to  hinder  him  in  his 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  45 

purpose,  she  told  her  son.  She  did  not  need  his 
support,  and  had  always  managed  her  affairs 
with  her  lawyer.  He  would  get  home  to  see  her 
on  occasional  furloughs,  such  as  other  mission- 
aries had.  He  would  probably  be  safe  in  India ; 
if  anything  happened  to  either  of  them,  heaven 
was  as  near  to  India  as  to  America.  She  was 
proud  of  him  for  wanting  to  go;  she  was  glad  she 
could  let  him.  Thus  it  was  agreed  between  them 
that,  if  he  felt  called  to  the  work,  he  ought  to  go, 
regardless  of  any  cost  to  their  personal  interests. 

That  same  afternoon,  Frank  Stanton  stood  up- 
on the  veranda  of  his  house,  drawing  on  his  gloves 
preparatory  to  making  a  call.  It  was  a  call  that 
would  decide  whether  another  possible  obstacle 
in  the  way  of  his  proposed  trip  to  India  could  be 
removed.  A  few  minutes'  rapid  walk  up  Broad- 
way brought  him  to  his  destination. 

The  Everest  home  was  larger  and  more  elegant 
than  that  of  the  Stantons',  but,  for  all  that,  it 
was  just  as  much  for  comfort  and  daily  use.  It 
stood  separated  from  the  street,  and  from  neigh- 
boring houses  by  a  broad  lawn.  There  was  a  neat 
iron  fence  around  the  lawn,  and  a  high  board 
fence  around  the  garden  at  the  back  of  the  house. 
The  southerners  are  slow  to  sacrifice  their  privacy 
to  the  general  appearance  of  a  street.  That 
pretty  fiction,  adopted  so  universally  in  the 


46  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

North,  of  removing  boundary  lines,  and  giving 
the  impression  that  all  the  lots  are  held  in  com- 
mon, makes  slow  progress  among  the  conserva- 
tive Kentuckians.  The  house  itself  was  a  solid 
brick  structure,  painted  grey.  Its  wide  entrance 
opened  from  a  broad  veranda  into  a  spacious 
hall.  Within,  everything  betokened  good  taste 
and  refinement.  About  every  rug,  and  ornament, 
and  picture,  and  piece  of  furniture,  there  was 
that  indefinable  something  which  betokens  good 
breeding.  A  man's  home  is  like  his  face — an 
index  to  his  character. 

Ever  since  there  had  been  a  Lexington,  there 
had  been  Everests  in  it.  They  had  always  been 
prosperous  and  influential  citizens.  For  several 
generations  they  had  given  themselves  to  the 
law.  The  present  head  of  the  house  was  a  middle- 
aged  man  who  had,  some  years  before,  succeeded 
to  the  practice  and  estate  of  his  father.  He  and 
his  wife  and  children,  together  with  his  only  sis- 
ter, many  years  his  junior,  made  up  the  house- 
hold. 

Mabel  Everest  was  a  beautiful  girl,  as  perfect 
as  some  graceful  Greek  goddess.  Her  complex- 
ion was  of  creamy  whiteness,  touched  with  the 
most  delicate  bloom.  Her  eyes,  with  wonderful, 
lustrous,  brown  depths,  and  long,  curling  lashes, 
were  the  chief  charm  of  a  face  whose  every  feature 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  47 

was  charming.  Her  golden  brown  hair  was  a 
crown  of  glory  to  her  shapely  head.  To  her  per- 
fection of  face  and  form,  and  grace  of  carriage, 
were  added  a  voice  both  soft  and  rich,  and  a  spirit 
as  sunny  and  serene  as  a  fair  southern  June  day. 

Frank  and  Mabel  had  been  fast  friends  ever 
since  a  day  in  their  childhood  when  he  was  a 
knight  errant  of  eleven  years,  and  she  a  fair 
but  tearful  damosel  of  six  summers.  The  youth- 
ful knight  had  found  her  where  she  had  wandered 
off  some  distance  from  home.  She  was  being  tor- 
mented by  a  big  boy,  who  had  snatched  her  sun- 
bonnet,  and  was  pretending  to  run  away  with  it. 

"  Here,  you  po '  white  trash,  drop  that  bonnet, 
and  let  that  little  girl  be,"  had  been  Frank's 
prompt  command  and  challenge. 

The  boy  immediately  tossed  the  bonnet  away 
and  fell  upon  the  little  girl's  champion.  It  was 
a  sharp  encounter,  and  our  knight  received 
"  many  dolorous  strokes,"  among  which  were  a 
bite  on  the  ear  and  a  blow  on  the  nose,  that  set 
both  a  bleeding.  But  Frank  was  of  good  stock 
and  was  fighting  in  a  righteous  cause.  Finally 
tie  got  his  antagonist  down  and  pummelled  him 
so  soundly,  that  he  was  glad  to  "  speak  the  loath 
word "  and  take  himself  off  when  released. 
Frank  made  himself  look  as  presentable  as  pos- 
sible, by  the  aid  of  his  handkerchief.  Then  he 


48  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

comforted  the  small  maiden,  who  was  more  terri- 
fied by  the  fight  than  she  had  been  by  her  tor- 
mentor. Learning  who  she  was,  the  boy  escorted 
her  home. 

After  that,  Frank  seemed  to  feel  a  proprietary 
interest  in  his  little  neighbor.  On  her  part,  she 
paid  him  that  reverence  which  a  child  often 
gives  to  an  older  one  who  condescends  to  notice 
it.  Passing  years  seemed  to  lessen  the  difference 
between  their  ages.  The  girl,  after  the  manner  of 
those  of  her  sex,  and  especially  of  those  in  the 
South,  matured  more  rapidly  than  the  lad.  She 
was  now  in  her  twentieth  year,  and  had  known 
for  several  years  of  a  love  that  had  been  uncon- 
sciously growing  for  Frank  since  the  days  of  her 
childhood. 

The  man  had  also  known  for  some  time  that 
his  feeling  of  comradeship  and  friendship  had 
deepened  into  a  holier  sentiment  for  the  beautiful 
girl.  Yet  their  frequent  letters,  and  their  rela- 
tions to  each  other  while  Frank  was  in  Chicago, 
or  at  home  on  vacation,  had  not  outwardly 
changed.  There  had  been  no  word  of  love  be- 
tween them.  Nothing,  however,  but  that  myster- 
ious fear  which  falls  upon  the  hearts  of  lovers 
before  they  speak  their  vows,  could  have  left  any 
uncertainty  in  the  heart  of  either  of  them. 

Stanton  had  made  up  his  mind  that  it  was  time 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  49 

to  banish  all  doubt.  He  pushed  open  the  gate  and 
let  it  swing  shut  behind  him,  as  he  went  rapidly 
up  the  walk  that  bright  afternoon.  Mabel  had 
been  watching  for  him  from  her  window  upstairs, 
and  ran  down  to  open  the  door  herself  almost  be- 
fore he  could  ring.  They  shook  hands  in  a  very 
matter-of-fact  way,  though  the  look  in  their  eyes 
was  far  otherwise.  They  were  to  ride  together, 
so  the  girl  had  on  a  closely-fitting  dark  blue  rid- 
ing habit.  No  rich  evening  costume  could  have 
been  more  becoming. 

"  You  see  I  am  all  ready  to  go,"  she  said 
brightly.  "  The  horses  will  be  around  in  a  few 
minutes.  Come  in  and  sit  down." 

Stanton  had  no  saddle-horse  in  his  stable  since 
he  had  left  Lexington.  He  was  to  ride  one  of  Mr. 
Everest's.  While  waiting  for  the  horses,  they 
chatted  gaily  together  about  things  old  and  new 
as  they  sat  by  the  library  fire.  Nothing  was  said 
about  India,  though  the  girl  knew  of  his  proposed 
plans,  and  both  their  hearts  were  full  of  the  sub- 
ject. 

Soon  they  were  on  their  horses — four  Kentucky 
thoroughbreds,  the  horses  and  the  riders  together 
— and  cantering  down  the  street.  When  they 
were  clear  of  the  city  and  out  on  the  beautiful 
Paris  'pike,  they  gave  their  horses  their  heads, 
and  sped  along  like  the  wind.  What  glorious 


50  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

roads  Kentucky  could  boast !  Smooth  and  broad 
and  hard,  flanked  on  both  sides  by  rich  blue- 
grass  farms — it  was  worth  while  to  ride  on  such 
roads,  through  such  a  country,  even  when  the 
frequent  tollgates  made  it  almost  as  expensive 
as  railroad  travel. 

Some  aspiring  souls  long  for  wings  with  which 
to  beat  the  air  and  soar  aloft.  What  could  be 
better  than  a  good  road,  and  a  noble  horse,  and 
a  fair  companion,  and  a  mad  ride  on  a  clear 
wintry  day.  Birds  and  angels  may  know  of  some 
superior  mode  of  locomotion;  certainly  men  can- 
not. Sometimes  with  their  horses  quietly  walk- 
ing, the  two  young  people  talked  together;  at 
other  times  they  raced  so  wildly  that  conversa- 
tion was  out  of  the  question.  It  mattered  not — 
merely  to  be  alive,  and  to  be  together  was  joy 
enough.  The  sun  was  setting  when  they  returned 
to  the  house.  Stanton  was  to  dine  with  the 
Everests,  and  spend  the  evening  with  Mabel.  He 
left  her  at  the  door,  and  hastened  home  to  dress. 

George  Everest  and  his  wife  were  comfortable 
people  to  be  with.  They  two,  Mabel  and  Frank, 
made  up  the  dinner  party.  The  brother 
thoroughly  approved  of  Frank,  and  was  always 
glad  to  see  him.  A  pleasant  hour  was  passed  at 
the  table  in  conversation,  and  in  doing  justice  to 
a  real  Kentucky  repast.  It  was  an  old-fashioned 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  51 

dinner,  even  if  the  evening  hour  at  which  it  was 
eaten  was  rather  new-fashioned  for  that  region. 

When  dinner  was  over,  they  all  withdrew  to 
the  parlor,  across  the  broad  hall.  After  a  little, 
Mrs.  Everest  was  called  away  to  the  nursery,  and 
her  husband  went  to  the  library  to  read  his  even- 
ing paper.  Left  to  themselves,  the  young  people 
drew  up  to  the  blazing  fire  and  gradually  drifted 
into  conversation  about  the  matter  that  was 
weighing  upon  both  their  hearts.  Frank  talked 
long  and  earnestly  of  the  step  he  was  contemplat- 
ing, and  of  all  there  was  in  it  to  appeal  to  him. 

"  You  knowr,  Mabel,"  he  said,  "  you  have  often 
spoken  of  the  way  I  pitched  into  the  big  chap 
who  was  teasing  you  that  day.  Of  course,  it 
was  nothing ;  any  boy  would  have  done  it,  regard- 
less of  consequences.  And  that's  how  I  feel  about 
this  work.  Those  poor  people  over  in  India  are 
down,  and  life  is  hard  for  them.  There  seem  to  be 
so  few  able  or  willing  to  go  help  them.  I  don't 
see  how  I  can  keep  my  self-respect  and  stay  at 
home." 

He  found  the  girl  in  hearty  sympathy  with  the 
plan,  and  full  of  admiration  for  his  manly  de- 
termination. It  gave  him  courage  for  the  task 
he  had  set  himself  for  that  night.  Yet  he  played 
about  the  question  for  a  long  time  without  dar- 
ing to  come  to  the  point.  They  fell  to  talking 


52  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

about  his  mother,  and  how  brave  she  was  to  let 
him  go,  in  spite  of  what  it  was  costing  her. 
Frank  arose  and  began  to  pace  the  room  while 
talking.  Suddenly  he  stopped  and  leaned  on  the 
back  of  the  great  easy  chair  in  which  the  girl  was 
sitting.  Her  head  was  against  the  cushion  on 
the  other  side  of  the  wide  back.  She  glanced  up 
at  him  and  smiled.  Something  she  saw  in  his 
eyes  made  her  veil  hers,  while  a  soft  flush  stole 
over  her  face.  Frank  looked  down  at  the  shapely 
head  with  its  wealth  of  golden-brown  hair,  and 
at  the  beautiful  face  with  its  downcast  eyes,  till 
the  question  in  his  heart  came  to  his  lips.  He 
spoke  quietly,  though  his  heart  was  throbbing 
wildly. 

"  Mabel,  you  talk  about  my  being  brave,  but 
I  am  a  coward.  Some  things  I  can  give  up ;  there 
is  one  I  cannot.  Do  you  remember  what  Barak 
said  to  Deborah  when  he  was  called  on  to  lead 
the  army  of  Israel  against  the  hosts  of  Sisera?  " 

The  girl  shook  her  head  without  looking  up. 
Whether  her  silence  was  due  to  lack  of  familiarity 
with  the  scriptures  or  to  other  causes — who 
knows? 

" '  If  thou  wilt  go  with  me,  then  I  will  go;  but 
if  thou  wilt  not  go  with  me,  then  I  will  not  go.' ' 
The  flush  deepened  upon  the  downcast  face,  but 
Mabel  did  not  stir  and  seemed  hardly  to  breathe. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE.  53 

"  My  darling,"  said  her  wooer,  "  I  cannot  tell 
you  how  long  I  have  loved  you.  I  only  know  I 
love  you  with  my  whole  heart.  I  feel  ashamed  to 
ask  you  to  give  up  all  you  have  here  for  a  life  of 
hardship  in  India.  But  I  cannot  go  without  the 
hope  of  having  you  with  me.  Do  you  love  me, 
little  sweetheart?  Do  you  think  you  could  go  to 
India  with  me? 

He  had  reached  down  and  taken  her  hand  in 
his.  It  was  trembling  in  his  grasp.  But  she 
raised  her  beautiful  eyes  to  his  and  answered  him 
without  a  moment's  hesitation. 

"  Yes,  anywhere." 

It  was  scarcely  more  than  a  whisper,  and  then 
there  was  silence.  Their  souls  were  awed;  the 
stillness  seemed  sacred.  After  a  while  he  stood 
before  her,  and  drew  her  up  to  him  by  both  her 
hands.  For  a  moment  he  held  her  close  to  his 
heart.  Their  eyes  were  the  windows  of  their 
souls,  through  which  looked  out  their  glowing 
love. 

"  Sweetheart,"  he  whispered,  "  I  must  go,  for  it 
is  late." 

He  laid  his  right  hand  gently  upon  her  head, 
and  it  seemed  to  the  girl  like  a  benediction.  He 
let  his  hand  slip  down  and  pat  her  blushing  cheek, 
and  press  her  head  against  his  heart.  He  turned 
her  face  up  to  his  and  looked  down  into  her  love- 


54  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

lit  eyes.  He  bent  his  head  and  softly  kissed  her 
lips.  Then  he  was  gone,  and  the  queenly  girl 
stood  alone  in  the  firelight,  transfigured  by  the 
power  of  love. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  55 


CHAPTER  IV 

EASTWARD   BOUND 

Six  months  later  Stanton  sailed  from  New 
York.  It  was  his  intention  to  spend  a  few  weeks 
in  England,  and  arrive  in  Calcutta  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  cool  season. 

He  had  returned  to  Chicago  a  few  days  after 
Mabel  Everest  had  become  his  affianced  bride. 
It  was  part  of  the  plan  of  the  Foreign  Society 
to  send  out  only  unmarried  men  at  that  time. 
Hence  Stanton  was  to  go  alone.  At  as  early  a 
date  as  possible,  Mabel  was  to  join  him  in  India. 

Until  the  beginning  of  summer  he  had  con- 
tinued his  work  in  Chicago.  Then  he  had  re- 
turned to  Lexington  to  spend  his  summer  with 
his  mother  and  his  betrothed.  That  vacation  was 
one  never  to  be  forgotten,  made  up  as  it  was  of 
golden  days,  full  of  love  and  happiness.  It  ended 
all  too  soon,  and  the  young  man  had  felt  the  first 
keen  sorrow  of  his  life  in  leaving  the  two  women 
whose  love  filled  his  heart.  Now  he  was  fairly 


56  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

off,  for  the  good  ship  was  steaming  out  of  New 
York  harbor. 

The  voyage  was  uneventful  and  pleasant. 
Frank  spent  most  of  his  time  on  deck,  reading 
and  dreaming.  It  was  too  late  in  the  season  for 
the  steamer  to  be  crowded.  The  people  on  board 
were  pleasant  enough,  but  Frank  was  too  pre- 
occupied with  his  own  thoughts  and  plans  to  care 
to  form  many  acquaintances.  Occasionally  he 
joined  other  young  people  in  strolling  up  and 
down  the  deck.  Dreaming,  however,  filled  up 
most  of  his  time  when  he  was  not  reading  or 
sleeping.  The  weather  was  fine,  and  only  the 
worst  sailors  experienced  any  considerable  in- 
convenience at  any  time  during  the  voyage. 

After  ten  days,  for  he  was  on  a  slow  boat, 
Stanton  saw  the  masts  of  Liverpool  harbor,  and 
the  smoke  of  the  city.  He  had  a  friend  there 
whom  he  had  known  some  years  before  at  college, 
who  was  practising  dentistry  in  the  city.  So  he 
was  spared  the  loneliness  of  landing  at  a  strange 
port  with  no  one  to  meet  him.  They  soon  got 
clear  of  the  Custom  House,  a  less  formidable  in- 
stitution in  Johnny  Bull's  domains  than  in  Uncle 
Sam's,  and  drove  away  to  young  Dr.  Nevill's 
house.  The  doctor  had  a  pretty  little  wife,  and 
a  comfortable  home.  Because  of  his  own  hopes 
for  the  future,  Stanton  was  as  much  interested  in. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  57 

the  home  and  happiness  of  his  friend  as  the  new 
mother  is  in  the  babies  of  all  her  acquaintances. 
There  was  little  of  interest  to  be  seen  in  the  city, 
but  everything  was  new  to  the  young  man,  who 
had  never  been  abroad  before.  At  the  end  of 
a  pleasant  week  spent  with  his  friend,  Frank  set 
out  for  London.  Dr.  Nevill  accompanied  him 
as  far  as  Chester,  which  he  desired  to  see  on  the 
way. 

The  few  days  spent  there  proved  fair,  a  rare 
thing  in  England  at  that  season  of  the  year,  so 
they  saw  the  quaint  old  city  to  good  advantage. 
To  walk  about  the  city  walls,  to  explore  the  noble 
old  cathedral,  to  visit  the  various  sleepy-looking 
shops  and  historic  houses,  and  to  ride  through  the 
narrow,  crooked  streets  on  the  second  story  of 
the  leisurely  horse-cars,  was  an  agreeable  way  for 
the  young  American  to  get  his  first  real  introduc- 
tion to  old-world  life.  He  was  rather  sorry  when 
his  friend  had  to  return  to  Liverpool,  and  leave 
him  to  resume  his  journey  alone. 

After  seeing  Chester,  Frank's  appetite  was 
whetted  for  more  of  England's  delightful  towns. 
Especially  was  he  anxious  to  see  Cambridge  and 
Oxford,  the  most  noted  cathedral  towns,  and  the 
homes  of  some  of  his  favorite  authors.  But  his 
time  was  so  short  that  he  decided  to  pass  them 
all  by  for  the  present  and  devote  himself  to  the 


58  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

metropolis  until  his  steamer  sailed.  About 
dark  one  rainy  evening  he  arrived  in  London. 
He  was  driven  at  once  to  a  quiet  hotel  in  South- 
ampton Kow,  where  he  had  engaged  a  room  upon 
the  recommendation  of  his  Liverpool  friends. 
He  found  it  a  comfortable  and  well  located  place. 
The  next  two  weeks  were  filled  with  sight-see- 
ing. Who  does  not  recall  with  pleasure  his  first 
visit  to  the  metropolis  of  the  world?  The  British 
Museum,  the  art  galleries,  the  Palace,  St.  Paul's, 
the  Abbey,  the  haunts  of  great  men  who  have 
passed  away,  the  parks,  the  monuments,  the 
streets — all  fraught  with  historic  memories  that 
are  dear  to  every  Anglo-Saxon  heart!  Frank 
Stanton  enjoyed  it  all  to  the  full.  Being  fresh 
from  academic  halls,  he  was  drawn  first  to  the 
Museum.  There  he  spent  the  greater  part  of 
several  days  getting  a  glimpse  of  many  things  he 
had  long  known  through  his  books.  The  Abbey 
and  the  Cathedral  next  claimed  his  attention  and 
revived  his  knowledge  of  English  history.  The 
former  carried  his  thoughts  back  to  the  past, 
made  glorious  by  the  great  men  whose  memories 
are  enshrined  in  the  beautiful  old  minster.  The 
latter,  standing  as  it  does  with  the  busy  life  of 
the  wonderful  city  surging  about  it,  made  the 
young  man  think  of  the  present.  Its  quiet  re- 
cesses, pervaded  by  their  "dim  religious  light/' 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  59 

reminded  him  of  all  that  Christianity  stands  for 
in  a  world  of  busy  cares.  In  the  world,  but  not 
of  it,  has  it  stood  where  life  is  intensest  and  most 
tried,  affording  a  sanctuary  for  weary  souls  be- 
yond the  noise  and  din  of  worldiness.  St.  Paul's 
seemed  a  type  of  all  this,  standing  above  the 
crowd  of  the  street,  unshaken  by  the  ebb  and  flow 
of  the  tides  of  humanity  all  about  it. 

Other  objects  did  not  fail  to  claim  his  eager  at- 
tention, but  it  was  the  streets  of  the  city  that 
came  to  fascinate  the  young  Kentuckian  most. 
He  took  to  riding  about  on  the  tops  of  omni- 
buses, whenever  the  weather  permitted.  It  was 
not  a  very  rapid  mode  of  travel  for  a  man  ac- 
customed to  the  speed  of  the  electric  trolleys  and 
elevated  lines  of  America's  cities,  but  Frank  was 
willing  to  go  slowly.  There  was  much  to  be  seen 
as  the  limbering  vehicles  toiled  along,  often 
brought  to  a  dead  stop  by  the  blocking  of  the 
street,  and  seldom  moving  faster  than  a  walk. 
But  the  streets  themselves,  crowded  from  curb 
to  curb  with  all  sorts  of  vehicles,  and  the  side- 
walks thronged  with  people,  were  the  crowning 
sight  of  the  city.  Of  course,  Frank  had  seen 
crowded  streets  before,  but  not  such  narrow, 
crooked  and  ancient  streets  as  abound  in  the 
heart  of  London. 

His  two  weeks  sped  away,  and  Stanton  found 


60  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

himself  once  more  on  the  deck  of  a  steamer,  this 
time  starting  upon  a  long  voyage.  Instead  of 
going  by  rail  to  Marseilles  or  Brindisi,  and  tak- 
ing ship  there  for  Bombay,  and  proceeding  thence 
by  rail  again  to  Calcutta,  as  most  travelers  do, 
he  was  making  the  trip  from  London  to  Calcutta 
by  water.  It  was  much  slower,  but  it  was  cheaper 
and  more  comfortable  for  a  good  sailor.  After 
a  whole  afternoon  spent  in  getting  clear  of  the 
river  Thames,  the  good  ship  stood  out  to  sea. 

The  Channel  and  the  Bay  of  Biscay  were  in 
their  usual  turbulent  condition.  It  was  too 
stormy  to  spend  much  time  on  deck.  All  ports 
had  to  be  closed,  so  cabins  and  saloons  were  stuffy 
and  dreary.  Everywhere  it  was  bleak  and  chill, 
for  there  was  no  provision  made  for  heating  the 
ship  while  in  cold  regions.  On  the  whole,  Frank 
rather  repented  the  thirst  for  the  sea  that  had 
prevented  his  escaping  a  week's  rough  and  un- 
comfortable sailing.  Better  days  followed,  how- 
ever, and  after  having  seen  Gibralter,  and  got 
his  sea-legs  well  on  by  the  time  they  reached  Mar- 
seilles, he  was  again  contented  to  have  come  as  he 
did.  It  was  some  pleasure  to  have  been  among 
the  early  settlers,  and  so  treat  those  who  joined 
at  the  French  port  as  interlopers,  and  hold  them 
at  a  distance  for  a  few  days. 

Soon  they  were  out  at  sea  again  and  crossing 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  61 

the  Mediterranean.  Fair  skies  and  seas  attended 
them  all  the  way  across  that  water-way  of  the 
great  nations  of  classical  days  and  fame.  The 
passengers  proved  a  congenial  company.  Most 
of  them  were  young  men  going  out  to  India  for 
civil,  or  police,  or  railway  service,  or  to  take  their 
places  in  offices  or  shops,  or  upon  tea  plantations. 
There  were  a  few  older  men  and  their  families  re- 
turning to  service  after  their  furloughs,  and  also 
a  few  missionaries.  The  young  ladies  of  the  com- 
pany were  not  numerous.  Two  or  three  of  them 
were  going  out  to  marry  the  lovers  who  had  sent 
for  them;  others  were  going  in  search  of  lovers 
who  were  only  remote  possibilities  as  yet. 

All  the  passengers  were  soon  on  fairly  intimate 
terms.  In  crossing  the  Atlantic  nowadays,  in  a 
week  or  less,  it  is  hardly  worth  while  to  try  to 
get  acquainted  with  fellow-passengers.  But 
when  a  company  of  people  find  themselves  thrown 
together  for  four  or  five  weeks,  they  instinctively 
begin  to  try  to  make  themselves  as  agreeable  to 
one  another  as  possible.  For  Frank,  the  first 
pangs  of  separation  from  his  friends  were  over. 
Strange  sights  and  experiences  had  broken  in  up- 
on his  dreamy  retrospect  of  what  he  had  left.  So 
he  entered  heartily  and  naturally  into  the  life  of 
the  little  world  where  he  found  himself. 

Quite  a  variety  of  amusements  of  a  mild  kind 


62  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

are  devised  during  the  long  and  rather  slow 
voyage  of  an  Oriental  steamer.  Of  course,  the 
usual  ship-board  mania  for  gambling  breaks  out 
and  claims  all  whose  conscientious  scruples  do 
not  guard  them.  Whether  it  is  cards,  checkers, 
or  only  the  daily  mileage  of  the  ship — all  must 
contribute  their  quota  of  excitement  by  afford- 
ing their  chances  of  loss  and  gain.  Smoking  in 
excess,  and  drinking,  usually  in  moderation,  help 
out  the  men.  Then  there  is  shuffle-board,  and 
quoits,  and  even  cricket  in  a  small  way.  Con- 
certs and  dances  upon  the  hurricane  deck  beguile 
the  tedium  of  many  nights.  Always  there  is  the 
chance  of  a  promenade  and  chat  with  a  pleasant 
companion,  or  a  quiet  time  in  a  long  deck  chair 
with  an  interesting  book. 

After  all  the  catalogue  of  ordinary  games  has 
been  laid  under  contribution,  and  a  monotony 
has  begun  to  creep  into  life,  it  is  possible  to  get 
up  wild  contests  between  the  first  and  second 
saloon  passengers.  Even  games  that  have  become 
stale  and  unprofitable  are  again  brought  forward 
in  the  tournament.  To  them  may  be  added  a 
tug  of  war,  a  contest  in  drinking  bottled  soda- 
water,  a  sack  race,  and  an  obstacle  race.  In  the 
excitement  of  the  last-named  sport  men  wildly 
dash  over  and  under  benches  and  bars,  struggle 
desperately  through  great  nets  suspended  hori- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  63 

zontally  in  mid-air,  and  wallow  and  squirm 
through  long  canvas  tunnels,  just  large  enough  to 
admit  them,  and  usually  containing  ambushes 
of  flour  and  soot  somewhere  in  their  serpentine 
lengths.  Such  things  afford  diversion  both  for 
participants  and  onlookers.  If  a  man  has  not 
become  too  blase,  and  too  satiated  by  over-famil- 
iarity with  highly  spiced  living,  the  simple  en- 
joyments of  a  life  on  shipboard  have  a  charm  all 
their  own.  Frank  was  in  a  world  of  new  ex- 
periences; he  derived  genuine  pleasure  from  them 
all. 

The  stop  at  Port  Said  afforded  the  first  glimpse 
of  a  strange  civilization.  Europe  is  intensely 
interesting  to  every  thoughtful  traveler.  But, 
after  all,  it  is  only  an  elder  America.  Not  so  the 
Orient.  Old  it  certainly  seems  and  is,  in  its 
customs  and  many  of  its  towns,  even  when  com- 
pared with  the  most  ancient  places  of  the  West- 
ern continents.  One  realizes  at  once  that  one  is 
in  contact  with  a  different  world  as  soon  as  one 
gets  the  first  glimpse  of  any  place  that  has  felt 
the  influence  of  the  East.  Port  Said  is  neither 
old  nor  new,  neither  Orient  nor  Occident.  It  is, 
however,  a  place  where  the  contending  influences 
meet.  To  the  stranger  to  the  East,  the  town 
with  its  narrow  and  dirty  streets,  its  men  in  tur- 
bans and  flowing  robes  of  many  colors,  its  noisy 


64  FIRES  OF  DESIRE. 

traders,  its  importunate  beggars,  is  a  fitting  pre- 
lude to  what  awaits  him  farther  on. 

Before  the  steamer  made  fast,  it  was  invaded 
by  a  motley  horde  of  traffickers.  Cigars  for  the 
men,  "  Turkish  Delight "  for  the  ladies,  curious 
toys  for  the  children,  all  sorts  of  useless  trifles 
for  everybody.  Nearly  everybody  bought  some- 
thing, if  for  no  other  reason  than  to  be  spending 
money  after  an  enforced  abstinence  of  many  days 
from  that  pleasing  occupation. 

In  the  crowd  was  a  magician — a  real  Oriental 
juggler.  From  the  nose  of  a  haughty  Briton 
who  resented  the  indignity  and  cuffed  the  trick- 
ster on  the  ear,  he  pulled  a  little,  peeping  chick. 
From  the  head  of  the  chick,  another  was  drawn 
forth.  In  a  moment  both  had  vanished,  nobody 
knew  where.  The  man  then  borrowed  a  sovereign 
from  a  passenger.  Another  agreed  to  hold  it  or 
to  forfeit  a  pound  of  his  own.  Yet  a  few  seconds 
after  he  had  closed  his  hand  tightly  over  it,  he 
had  to  admit,  with  some  confusion,  that  it  was 
gone.  Where  it  was  remained  a  mystery  until 
the  wizard  said  it  could  be  found  in  the  pocket 
of  another  passenger  in  the  outskirts  of  the 
crowd.  There,  sure  enough,  it  was,  identified  by 
date  and  other  marks.  Finally,  the  wonder- 
worker poured  a  little  heap  of  sand  upon  the  deck. 
After  passing  a  mangoe  seed  around  for  inspec- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  65 

tion,  he  hid  it  in  the  sand  and  covered  it  with  a 
cloth.  Incantations  were  muttered,  and  when 
the  cloth  was  removed  a  tiny  green  shoot  was 
seen.  Repeating  the  process  several  times,  the 
man  at  last  displayed  to  his  delighted  audience 
a  good-sized  mangoe  tree. 

Thus  on  the  open  deck  of  the  ship,  and  without 
accomplices,  the  lad  mystified  the  company  with 
trick  after  trick.  In  the  midst  of  exclamations 
of  astonishment,  and  applause,  and  liberal  back- 
sheesh,  a  venerable  traveler  who  had  spent  many 
years  in  India,  stalked  by. 

"  Boy,"  he  said  with  high  disdain,  "  go  home, 
and  send  us  your  grandfather  to  show  us  some- 
thing worth  while." 

That  did  not  make  the  tricks  less  wonderful,  of 
course.  But,  somehow,  Frank  and  the  others  felt 
ashamed  to  have  been  caught  enjoying  what 
Nestor  considered  a  very  tame  show.  Alas,  that 
those  who  have  drunk  the  draught  of  life  to  the 
dregs  have  to  go  about  casting  bitterness  into 
the  cup  of  other's  joy!  All  that  was  forgotten, 
though,  when  it  was  possible  to  go  ashore.  Nes- 
tor did  not  go;  not  he!  He  had  seen  better 
shores,  and  could  not  understand  why  people 
were  mad  enough  to  visit  such  a  town  as  the  Port. 
Fortunately  for  the  merchants  of  the  town  who 
had  sundry  wares  to  dispose  of  at  exorbitant 


66  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

prices,  all  the  company  were  not  so  well  seasoned. 

It  seemed  to  Frank  that  the  whole  place  must 
be  made  up  of  equal  parts  of  noise  and  dirt,  with 
just  enough  Oriental  color  and  gewgaws  to  give 
spice  to  the  mixture.  A  conviction,  destined  to 
•  strengthen  the  farther  east  he  went,  came  upon 
him  then — that  if  the  germ  theory  were  ever  en- 
forced in  that  part  of  the  world  the  life  of  the 
entire  populace  would  not  be  worth  a  moment's 
purchase.  He  went  the  rounds — donkey  rides, 
bargaining,  and  all — and  got  back  to  the  ship 
a  tireder  and  poorer  man. 

Comparing  bargains  and  experiences  afforded 
the  company  amusement  for  hours  after  the  ship 
left.  One  good  woman  was  indignant  that  every- 
body had  taken  advantage  of  the  poor  trades- 
men, and  had  bought  their  goods  at  ruinous 
prices.  She  knew  the  prices  were  ruinous  to  the 
poor  souls,  for  she  had  heard  them  declaring, 
sometimes  with  tears  streaming  down  their 
cheeks,  that  financial  ruin  would  be  the  result  of 
that  day's  work.  She  herself  had  the  peace  of 
conscience  that  came  from  a  knowledge  that  all 
her  purchases  were  made  at  the  merchants'  ask- 
ing price.  If  they  considered  the  matter  at  all 
in  the  light  of  ethical  standards,  those  traders 
must  have  had  a  bad  quarter  of  an  hour  with 
their  consciences.  Probably  they  contented  them- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  67 

selves  with  the  thought  that  someone  else  would 
have  robbed  the  lady  if  they  had  not;  or  yet 
more  probably,  they  were  sadder  at  the  thought 
of  what  they  lost  by  not  asking  her  more,  than 
they  were  at  the  recollection  of  any  sharp  bar- 
gaining on  the  part  of  wily  purchasers  who  cut 
th'eir  profits  low. 

"  Look  at  these  beautiful  boxes  of  '  Turkish 
Delights ! '  "  cried  a  young  lady.  "  The  man 
asked  a  crown  a  box  for  them,  and  I  bought  them 
for  two  bob.  Such  a  bargain  !  " 

"  Oh,  but  look  at  mine,"  said  someone  else.  "  I 
gave  only  a  shilling  a  box,  and  they  are  the  same 
size  and  brand." 

"  Why  the  wretch,  then  he  cheated  me  after 
all !"  she  declared  with  disgust.  It  is  not  pleas- 
ant to  be  outwitted  in  a  sharp  bargain. 

"  I  made  the  greatest  trade  of  my  life,"  re- 
marked a  youth.  "  Man  offered  me  this  fine 
cigar-holder  for  a  pound.  It's  first-class  meer- 
schaum with  amber  mouthpiece.  Don't  you 
know,  I  bought  it  for  half  a  crown." 

"  Fancy  that !"  and  "  Lucky  beggar !"  the  audi- 
tors ejaculated,  while  the  proud  possessor  of  the 
prize  puffed  vigorously  at  his  cigar. 

The  cigar  was  about  gone,  and  a  spark  touched 
the  holder  just  at  that  moment.  When,  lo !  there 
was  a  flash  and  a  sputter,  and  the  cherished 


68  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

possession  went  up  in  fire  and  smoke.  Meer- 
schaum and  amber  were  but  base  celluloid,  and 
the  whole  had  not  been  worth  a  farthing.  Thus 
they  all  took  their  first  lessons  in  the  school  which 
was  to  teach  them  that  "  for  ways  that  are  dark  " 
the  heathen  Chinee  is  not  peculiar  among  the 
heathen. 

The  slow  passage  through  the  Suez  Canal  had 
its  own  particular  novelty.  After  that  came  the 
Bed  Sea,  hot  despite  the  lateness  of  the  season. 
The  men  took  to  sleeping  on  the  deck,  and  many 
of  the  ladies  forsook  their  cabins  for  the  more 
airy  music  room.  It  was  not  hard  to  believe  that 
in  the  hot  season  it  was  sometimes  necessary  to 
put  the  ship  about  and  steam  back  over  her  course 
against  the  wind  for  a  few  hours,  to  revive  the 
drooping  passengers. 

Not  until  Aden  was  reached  did  the  ship  stop 
again.  As  Frank  stood  looking  out  upon  the 
little  settlement  surrounded  by  sandy  wastes  and 
barren  hills,  the  captain  stopped  beside  him. 

"  What  do  you  think  of  the  place?  "  he  asked. 

"  Kather  desolate,  seems  to  me,"  Frank  re- 
plied. 

"  That  it  is,"  said  the  captain.  "  No  wonder 
that  Pat  expressed  himself  about  it  as  he  did — 
1  Faith,  and  is  this  Aden !  Be  jabbers,  Oi'm  glad 
me  ancistors  et  the  pippin  an'  got  kicked  out  be- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  69 

fore  Oi  was  born,  fer  Oi'd  not  be  fer  stayin  in 
such  a  Garden  of  Aden.' ' 

Much  pleased  at  the  young  man's  hearty  laugh 
at  his  oft-told  joke,  the  old  tar  passed  on  to  tell 
it  to  others. 

Since  1839  Aden  has  belonged  to  the  British, 
being  a  part  of  the  Indian  Empire.  It  is  an  im- 
portant port  of  call,  and  a  coaling  station  for 
steamers.  Adjacent  land  has  passed  to  the  Eng- 
lish by  cession  or  purchase,  the  Arab  chiefs  hav- 
ing been  reconciled  to  the  change  by  permanent 
government  pensions.  There  are  not  wanting 
those  among  the  foreigners  in  Arabia,  and  even 
many  among  the  most  progressive  natives,  who 
hope  to  see  the  day  when  England's  beneficent 
rule  shall  supersede  that  of  the  incompetent  Turk 
throughout  the  peninsula.  It  would  mean  peace, 
and  evenhanded  justice,  and  prosperity,  where 
now  none  of  these  is  found. 

There  were  squadrons  of  small  boats  and  rafts 
about  the  ship,  all  filled  with  little  Arabs.  They 
were  anxious  and  clamorous  to  dive  for  coins 
thrown  into  the  water.  As  an  additional  incen- 
tive to  the  passengers  to  bestow  largess,  the  lit- 
tle savages  regaled  them  with  verses  of  "  Daisy, 
Daisy,  give  me  your  answer  true,"  and  kindred 
ditties.  Frank  wondered  whether  they  had 
other  national  airs  in  their  repertoire  for  the 


70  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

benefit  of  ships  of  other  nations.  In  defiance 
of  the  danger  of  being  devoured  by  the  sharks 
that  infest  the  waters,  little  chaps  would  dive 
from  the  dizzy  height  of  the  hurricane  deck,  in 
the  hope  of  recovering  a  sixpence  tossed  over- 
board. 

Ostrich  feathers  of  various  sizes,  in  plumes  and 
boas,  seemed  the  chief  commodity  offered  for  sale. 
Profiting  by  former  experiences,  the  passengers 
bought  cautiously.  Some  of  the  feathers  were  of 
real  value,  but  many  were  made  up  of  small  and 
poor  tips.  Perhaps  some  were  even  the  product 
of  the  Western  genius  that  can  fashion  the  plum- 
age of  every  possible  and  impossible  bird  from 
the  feathers  of  common  barn-yard  fowls. 

Stanton  joined  a  party  that  went  ashore  while 
the  ship  coaled.  The  town  did  not  prove  much 
more  interesting  than  the  settlement  at  the  land- 
ing had,  except  that  it  was  built  in  the  crater  of 
an  extinct  volcano.  The  party  drove  out  to  see 
the  famous  tanks. 

"  Why,"  said  Frank  in  astonishment  when  he 
saw  the  vast  reservoirs,  "  I  didn't  expect  to  see 
anything  like  this.  I  thought  they  would  be  great 
iron  or  wooden  tanks  something  like  what  we 
have  along  our  railroads  for  water." 

"  No,"  said  an  old  traveler,  "  In  the  East  any 
pond  or  lake  or  reservoir  is  called  a  tank." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  71 

The  Aden  tanks  are  worth  seeing.  No  one 
seerns  to  know  just  how  or  when  they  were  built. 
In  that  almost  rainless  region,  their  construction 
was  a  blessing.  They  are  the  more  remarkable 
because  Arabia  is  almost  totally  destitute  of  all 
ancient  works  of  architecture  and  engineering. 
Built  of  solid  masonry,  arranged  to  receive  and 
store  up  all  the  rainfall,  one  overflowing  into 
another  until  all  were  filled,  they  constitute  a 
work  of  real  skill.  Ibn  Batuta,  the  noted  Moorish 
traveler,  found  them  in  use  when  he  visited  the 
little  city  early  in  the  fourteenth  century.  The 
town  was  then  a  great  trading  port.  But  town 
and  tanks  were  alike  well-nigh  deserted  when  the 
trade  between  Europe,  Africa,  and  the  East  was 
diverted  by  the  route  around  the  Cape.  With  the 
opening  up  of  the  Suez  Canal,  trade  and  popula- 
tion came  again  to  Aden.  The  English  have  re- 
paired and  restored  the  reservoirs,  and  they  are 
now  in  use.  Rain,  however,  is  so  rare  and  scanty 
that  little  dependence  is  placed  upon  its  coming. 
Water  is  now  secured  chiefly  by  distillation  from 
the  sea. 

A  few  hours  later  the  steamer  was  plowing  the 
waters  again.  Across  the  Arabian  Sea,  into  the 
Indian  Ocean  where  the  Southern  Cross  looked 
down  upon  them  by  night,  they  held  their  course. 
And  then,  one  morning  they  caught  a  glimpse  of 


72  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Paradise,  a  vision  of  the  isle  "  where  every  pros- 
pect pleases" — beautiful  Ceylon. 

Frank  saw  it  first  from  a  distance  in  the  early 
morning,  green  clad  to  the  water's  edge.  Later, 
the  ship  anchored  in  the  spacious  harbor  of  Co- 
lombo, and  the  nearer  view  dissipated  none  of 
the  charm  of  the  first  view.  After  Port  Said,  and 
Aden,  and  the  waste  of  waters  for  many  days,  the 
harbor  full  of  ships  of  every  size,  the  panorama 
of  the  stately  city,  and  the  encircling  background 
of  verdure  were  all  grateful  to  the  eyes.  Every- 
one was  anxious  to  get  ashore.  Frank,  bent  up- 
on gaining  experience,  chose  a  catamaran  to  con- 
vey him.  He  enjoyed  the  novelty  of  a  ride  in  the 
strange,  narrow  craft.  When  he  got  to  the  city 
he  felt  that  he  was  in  the  Orient  indeed. 

The  young  man  walked  up  a  street  lined  with 
bazars  filled  with  bewilderingly  beautiful  needle- 
work, and  wood  carvings,  and  silver-ware.  It 
was  not  easy  to  resist  the  importunity  of  the 
merchants,  so  ably  seconded  by  the  mute  appeal 
of  their  tempting  wares.  After  a  little  he  took  a 
jinrikisha,  one  of  those  odd,  man-drawn  car- 
riages, first  designed  by  a  Japanese  missionary 
for  the  use  of  his  invalid  wife,  and  since  then  find- 
ing their  way  all  over  the  East.  The  sleek, 
nearly  naked,  brown,  little  man  drawing  the 
'rikisha  trotted  briskly  about  from  street  to 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  73 

street.  In  execrable  English  he  tried  to  indicate 
the  chief  points  of  interest — shops,  government 
buildings,  temples,  churches,  palaces,  and  huts. 

Leaving  the  overpaid  man  loudly  clamoring 
for  more  money,  after  the  manner  of  all  his  kind, 
Frank  hailed  a  carriage  to  take  him  to  more 
distant  places.  Through  the  fragrant  Cinnamon 
Gardens,  out  to  Mount  Lavinia  for  a  good  rest 
and  a  sumptuous  tiffin  in  the  hotel  by  the  sea, 
then  back  to  town  along  the  palm-lined  roads  in 
the  cool  of  the  day,  and  so  out  to  the  ship  in  time 
for  dinner  and  sailing.  Thus  the  day  ended.  It 
had  given  Stanton  some  idea  of  the  life  awaiting 
him.  He  had  seen  something  of  the  splendor  and 
squalor  of  a  modern  Oriental  city.  For  the  first 
time  he  had  looked  into  Buddhist  and  Hindu  tem- 
ples with  their  strange  pictures,  grotesque 
images,  and  motley  worshipers.  The  next  port 
would  be  Calcutta,  his  destination  and  field  of 
labor.  Would  it  be  like  Colombo?  He  hoped 
that  it  would  have  some  of  that  city's  attractive- 
ness to  mingle  with  his  toil. 

The  Bay  of  Bengal  proved  rough,  as  it  often 
does.  Some  of  the  company  who  had  flattered 
themselves  that  they  had  their  sea-legs  on  too 
firmly  to  lose  them,  were  wofully  surprised.  In 
deep  disgust  with  himself,  a  Scotchman,  who  was 


74  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

making  the  voyage  for  his  health,  vowed  he  would 
go  home  by  land. 

"  Why,"  he  growled,  "  here  I've  been  sailing 
for  a  month,  and  thought  I  was  well  past  getting 
upset  like  this." 

"  Probably  he  has  been  eating  and  drinking  too 
much,"  said  the  captain,  when  Frank  told  him 
about  the  Scot.  "  You  look  out  for  that  in  India, 
my  lad,"  he  added.  "  No  end  of  young  chaps 
finish  themselves  that  way  in  the  tropics." 

"  By  the  way,"  the  old  skipper  exclaimed  after 
a  moment,  "  that  reminds  me  of  what  Pat  said 
when  the  colonel  of  his  regiment  died — l  Yis,  they 
eats  and  they  drinks,  and  they  drinks  and  they 
eats  till  they  dies,  and  thin  they  writes  home  and 
tells  their  friends  it's  the  climate  as  killed 
thim.' " 

They  got  to  the  mouth  of  the  Hooghly  River 
just  too  late  to  enter  that  day,  for  the  tide  was 
running  out. 

"  Too  bad  to  miss  it  by  such  a  little,"  said 
Frank  to  a  young  tea-planter. 

"All  bally  foolishness,"  declared  the  planter 
impatiently.  "  Why  didn't  they  steam  up  and  get 
into  the  river  before  the  tide  ran  out?  Fancy  a 
Yankee  captain  doing  a  thing  like  that.  He'd 
burst  his  boilers  but  he'd  get  there  in  time  to 
save  twelve  hours'  wait." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  75 

The  Briton  had  spent  some  years  in  'America, 
and  in  his  impatience  had  condescended  to  tickle 
Frank's  ears,  as  an  Englishman  seldom  does,  by 
praising  Yankee  ways. 

Next  day  they  entered  the  river.  But  the 
channel  is  narrow,  and  the  current  swift  and 
treacherous,  so  they  made  slow  progress.  The 
eighty  miles  up  to  the  city  were  not  covered  that 
day.  Night  found  them  anchored  again,  awaiting 
light  and  tide.  It  was  tedious  and  hot  on  board, 
and  the  mosquitoes  invaded  the  cabins  and  made 
sleep  difficult. 

No  one  was  sorry  when  the  last  few  miles  of 
the  long  journey  were  begun  with  the  dawn  of 
day.  Could  they  have  foreseen  what  awaited 
them  in  India,  perhaps  they  would  have  been  less 
impatient  to  land.  The  country  exacts  a  heavy 
tribute  from  every  shipload  of  foreigners  set  upon 
its  shores — discomfort,  sickness,  anxiety,  moral 
ruin,  death.  But  none  thought  of  the  like  that 
day  as  they  hailed  with  delight  the  first  sight  of 
the  City  of  Palaces. 

Past  Fort  William,  and  the  wide  Maidan,  and 
the  beautiful  Eden  Gardens,  the  ship  swept. 
Then  it  made  fast  to  the  landing.  Amid  the  rush 
of  many  feet,  and  the  clamor  of  many  voices, 
Frank  made  his  way  to  the  gang-plank.  A  hand 
reached  out  of  the  crowd  and  grasped  his.  A 


76  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

voice  of  kindly  greeting  sounded  in  his  ears. 
Richard  Clifford  led  him  through  a  mob  of  shout- 
ing coolies  out  upon  the  landing.  At  last,  he  was 
in  the  capital  of  Imperial  India. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  77 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  SHADOW  OF  COMING  EVENTS 

"  You  can't  believe  how  glad  I  am  to  see  you," 
said  Clifford,  after  the  first  greetings  were  ex- 
changed. "  You  are  a  reminder  from  home  and 
old  times,  and  a  helper  to  a  hard-worked  man.  I 
can  see  all  sorts  of  good  things  for  the  work, 
now  that  you  have  come." 

"I  want  to  help  all  I  can,"  Frank  replied; 
"  but  you  will  have  to  give  me  time  to  Orient  my- 
self in  more  senses  than  one." 

As  they  pushed  their  way  through  the  throng, 
they  were  beset  by  the  coolies  clamoring  for  a 
chance  to  earn  a  few  pice  by  carrying  some- 
thing for  them. 

"  What  are  these  naked  savages  gibbering 
about?  "  asked  the  newcomer. 

"  Oh,  they  are  not  very  savage,  and  they  are 
only  asking  for  work  in  very  intelligible,  if  not 
very  classic,  Hindustani,"  responded  his  compan- 
ion. 


78  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

They  soon  made  their  way  to  a  waiting  car- 
riage, and  started  for  home.  An  agent  would  get 
Stanton's  luggage  and  effects  through  the  Custom 
House,  and  deliver  them  in  good  time.  The  car- 
riage sped  along  the  Strand,  and  into  Harrison 
Road.  It  was  hard  to  see  how  the  coachman 
avoided  running  into  the  endless  procession  of 
bullock  carts,  and  the  hundreds  of  men  who 
walked  in  the  street  in  preference  to  the  side- 
walk. The  driver  seemed  to  pay  little  attention 
to  anything  in  the  way:  the  syce  upon  the  step 
at  the  rear  of  the  carriage  cleared  the  road  by 
dint  of  vociferous  yelling.  When  they  neared  a 
corner  to  be  turned  he  would  get  down  and  dash 
ahead  to  warn  men  and  vehicles  out  of  the  path 
of  the  coach.  Then,  as  the  carriage  dashed  past, 
he  would  nimbly  jump  again  to  his  place.  It  was 
all  very  exciting  to  the  stranger.  He  momen- 
tarily expected  any  number  of  men  to  be  ground 
under  hoofs  and  wheels. 

As  they  neared  Harrison  Hoard,  Stanton  saw 
the  great  pontoon  bridge  that  spans  the  river, 
and  all  day  long  is  packed  with  vehicles  and  men, 
surging  back  and  forth  between  Calcutta  and 
Howrah.  Harrison  Road  is  wide,  for  it  was  cut 
by  the  government  in  recent  years  through  a  sea 
of  huts  and  a  labyrinth  of  narrow  lanes.  It  is 
macadamized  and  electric  lighted,  and  affords  a 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  79 

reasonably  straight  way  for  traffic  and  fresh 
air.  But  it  could  not  make  anyone  think  of  a 
Western  city.  It  is  lined  with  lofty  buildings  of 
strange  architecture.  Many  streets  cross  it,  so 
narrow  that  a  wheelbarrow  could  hardly  be 
pushed  through  them.  The  myriad  vehicles  that 
fill  the  street  are  nearly  all  carts  drawn  by  small, 
hump-necked  oxen,  or  large,  antediluvian  water- 
buffaloes.  They  are  driven  by  men  who  are  naked 
except  for  a  loin  cloth,  squatting  on  the  poles 
of  the  carts  between  their  animals,  and  urging 
them  on  by  heavy  blows  and  cruel  twists  of 
their  tails. 

And  the  people — what  Western  city  ever 
dreamed  of  the  like?  Men  turbaned  and  men 
bareheaded ;  men  in  garments  of  ample  fold  and 
men  with  almost  no  garments  at  all.  Cloth  of 
every  color  of  the  rainbow  in  turbans  and  in  gar- 
ments, and  faces  of  men  and  women  that  varied 
from  the  shade  of  strong  coffee  without  cream,  to 
that  of  cream  with  a  little  coffee  in  it.  All  that 
could  be  found  only  in  India.  Frank  had  time 
that  day  to  note  but  little  of  it  before  they 
whisked  around  the  corner  of  Cornwallis  Street. 
Thence  they  were  soon  borne  to  the  stately  house 
of  the  Mukerji's. 

Upon  the  wide  veranda  Mrs.  Clifford  met  the 
young  stranger  most  graciously,  and  soon  made 


8o  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

him  feel  at  home.  She  would  have  done  no  less 
for  any  friend  that  her  husband  might  have 
brought  to  their  home.  For  this  man  who  had 
come  to  lighten  her  husband's  burdens,  she  would 
gladly  have  done  more.  There  was  mail  await- 
ing him  from  the  home-land,  so  he  was  shown  to 
his  room  at  once,  that  he  might  read  it,  and  then 
rest  till  the  two  o'clock  tiffin. 

Frank  found  the  room  large  and  lofty  and  airy, 
with  its  mosquito-net  curtained  bed  standing  in 
the  center,  for  the  sake  of  the  breeze  at  night. 
There  was  plenty  of  spare  room  around  it,  how- 
ever. The  usual  bathroom  opened  off  the  bed- 
room, and  all  things  for  his  comfort  were  at  hand. 
So  Frank  read  his  letters  and  unpacked  the  bags 
he  had  brought  with  him.  Then,  dressing  for 
lunch,  he  lay  back  in  an  armchair  with  a  sigh  of 
contentment  and  relief.  He  was  in  his  new  home, 
and  he  found  it  delightful  and  restful. 

It  was  the  munificence  of  Satis  Kumar  Mukerji 
that  had  made  it  possible  for  the  new  missionary 
to  find  shelter  in  such  a  home.  Yet  the  young 
man's  entrance  into  that  home  was  to  entail  sor- 
row upon  the  last  of  the  Mukerji  line.  If  the 
spirit  of  the  good  man  knew  aught  of  the  future 
ill,  as  he  looked  down  that  day  from  the  realms  of 
the  blessed,  he  must  also  have  known  something 
of  higher  good  to  be  wrought  thereby.  So  no 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  81 

cloud  presaging  disaster  was  in  the  sky  that  day, 
and  none  cast  any  gloom  over  the  dwellers  in 
that  house. 

At  tiffin  Stanton  met  the  daughter  of  the  house, 
Radha  Mukerji.  She  wore  the  name  of  the  beau- 
tiful consort  of  the  god  Krishna,  not  because  her 
father  was  devoted  to  that  divinity  at  the  time  of 
his  daughter's  birth;  it  was  a  name  of  long  stand- 
ing in  the  family.  She  met  the  young  man  with 
a  shy,  but  not  self-conscious  grace  when  he  was 
presented  to  her.  He  thought  the  skilfully  blend- 
ed combination  of  the  costume  of  the  East  and 
the  West  that  she  wore  was  very  becoming  to 
her.  Her  clear  skin  was  not  darker  than  the 
faces  of  many  ladies  of  Greece  or  Italy.  With 
her  delicately  molded  features,  her  dark  hair 
demurely  parted  and  smoothed  back  from  her 
broad,  low  brow,  her  soft  brown  eyes,  and  her 
gentle,  musical  voice,  the  young  man  thought  her 
a  very  charming  little  person.  It  seemed  to  him 
odd  at  first  to  hear  her  talking  English  with 
scarcely  the  shadow  of  an  accent,  even  though  he 
had  read  of  the  thousands  of  educated  Indians 
who  know  the  language  from  their  childhood. 

The  tiffin  hour  passed  most  pleasantly.  But 
life  was  not  to  be  all  resting  and  feasting  for  the 
new  recruit.  As  they  strolled  out  to  the  veranda. 
Clifford  introduced  the  subject  of  work. 


82  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  By  the  way,  Stanton,  the  pastor  of  the  Euro- 
pean church  is  laid  up  with  a  bad  cold,  and  asked 
me  to  get  you  to  preach  for  him  Sunday.  You'll 
help  him  out,  I  know.  I  shall  want  your  help, 
too,  in  a  big  open  air  meeting  I  hope  to  hold 
Sunday  in  Cornwallis  Square." 

"  Why,  man,"  protested  Stanton,  "  can't  you 
give  me  time  to  draw  my  breath?  This  is  Thurs- 
day now.  What  do  I  know  about  your  open  air 
preaching?  Let  me  see  you  at  such  work  before  I 
try  it." 

"  Oh,  you  may  see  how  I  do  it,"  was  the  reply. 
"  I'll  be  there  and  speak  before  you — in  Bengali." 

Objections  were  vain,  and  so  work  began  at 
once.  Nor  was  it  without  its  pleasure  to  Stan- 
ton.  In  his  own  church  and  in  other  European 
congregations  he  was  soon  in  demand,  and  was 
gladly  heard.  Audiences  of  students  and  other 
educated  Bengalis  whom  he  addressed  were 
favorably  impressed  by  him  from  the  first.  Had 
he  cared  to  spend  all  his  time  in  such  labor  he 
might  have  done  so.  But  he  was  determined  to 
devote  himself  to  the  study  of  the  language  dur- 
ing his  first  years  in  India. 

What  with  study  and  preaching,  his  days  were 
soon  full.  Yet  there  was  often  time  in  the  cool 
of  the  day  to  drive  with  the  ladies  about  the  city 
and  on  the  Maidan.  In  all  he  found  the  little 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  83 

Bengali  lady  as  useful  as  she  was  charming. 
At  church  when  he  preached,  and  in  their  conver- 
sation when  the  talk  was  of  the  ways  of  far-off 
Western  lands,  she  was  the  receiver.  But  when 
preparing  his  lessons  for  the  old  Pundit,  or 
while  driving  about  to  rest  brain  and  body,  he 
found  her  a  helpful  counselor,  or  an  instructive 
guide. 

Not  many  girls  in  Bengal  had  lived  under  such 
influences  and  received  such  an  education  as  had 
Radha  Mukerji.  Her  father  had  persistently  re- 
fused to  marry  her  to  anyone  as  a  child.  He  had 
been  without  fear  of  the  curses  pronounced  by  his 
sacred  books  upon  those  who  let  girls  pass  from 
childhood  to  maidenhood  without  being  married. 
So  he  had  put  aside  the  proposals  of  all  the 
fathers  who  came  to  him  to  arrange  an  alliance 
between  his  daughter  and  their  sons.  Satis 
Kumar  felt  well  satisfied  that  their  concern 
for  the  souls  of  himself  and  his  child  was  greatly 
heightened  by  visions  of  the  munificent  dowry 
the  girl  would  take  to  their  impecunious  sons. 
Thus  Radha  had  not  been  cut  off  from  education 
by  wifehood  and  motherhood  at  an  age  when  Wes- 
tern children  are  just  getting  fairly  started  with 
their  schooling. 

From  the  first,  Mukerji  had  provided  his 
daughter  with  efficient  instructors.  When  she 


84  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

was  prepared  for  it,  he  had  sent  her  to  Bethune 
College,  that  she  might  come  into  contact  with 
other  girls  at  study.  He  did  not  much  care  that 
the  college  was  made  up  largely  of  Christian 
and  Brahmo  girls  of  various  castes.  It  was 
enough  distinction  to  have  his  child  outrival  all 
the  others  in  scholarship,  no  matter  what  their 
caste  or  creed.  Whether  studying  at  home  under 
a  tutor,  or  in  the  college  near  by,  the  father  care- 
fully supervised  her  studies  and  aided  her  in 
them.  They  talked  and  read  much  together. 

In  the  later  years  of  her  father's  life  Radha  had 
known  all  his  thoughts  and  plans.  Thus  she  be- 
came thoroughly  familiar  with  all  the  history  and 
institutions  of  her  people.  With  him,  she  longed 
to  correct  the  evils  of  the  country,  and  see  it 
united  and  prosperous  and  free.  Like  him,  too, 
her  loyal  heart  could  ill  endure  any  harsh  criti- 
cisms by  foreigners  of  the  misfortunes  and  sins 
of  her  countrymen. 

A  life  of  such  training  and  companionship  had 
taught  the  young  girl  how  to  think  and  reason. 
But  she  did  not  often  do  it.  There  were  too  many 
other  elements  in  her  nature.  The  training  of 
her  mothers,  through  uncounted  generations,  had 
its  influence.  It  all  told  against  independence 
and  reason,  and  for  submission  and  sentiment. 
Her  cousin,  the  chief  factor  in  the  girl's  earliest 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  85 

years,  was  decidedly  a  woman  of  the  old  school. 
Her  ayahs  had  been  from  the  same  school,  but 
from  its  lower  classes,  so  to  speak.  Totally  il- 
literate, but  well  versed  in  the  folk-lore  of  the 
past  and  the  gossip  of  the  present,  they  had  much 
to  teach  a  child  in  the  many  hours  that  they  were 
together. 

One  old  woman  had  come  to  her  as  ayah  when 
Radha  was  in  her  sixth  year,  and  had  remained 
with  her  ever  since.  To  the  kind-hearted  old 
Sukia,  the  Bengali  girl  had  given  the  same  de- 
votion that  used  to  exist  between  the  rich 
planters'  children  and  their  black  mammies  dur- 
ing the  old  regime  in  the  South.  Thus  in  the 
most  impressionable  period  of  her  life,  and  from 
those  of  her  own  sex  nearest  to  her,  Radha  had 
felt  the  potent  spell  of  the  forces  that  have  been 
working  for  millenniums  to  make  the  women  of 
India  what  they  are. 

The  result  was  inevitable,  and  easily  foreseen. 
When  the  girl  stopped  to  reason,  she  was  guided 
by  the  powers  that  had  made  and  controlled  her 
father,  the  forces  of  the  New  India.  But  in  all 
the  larger  ranges  of  her  life,  where  instinct  and 
feeling  were  regnant,  she  was  a  true  daughter  of 
the  Old  India.  Hence,  when  she  acted  upon  im- 
pulse, and  under  the  guidance  of  her  sub-con- 
scious self,  as  everybody  does  ordinarily  act,  her 


86  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

course  was  determined  by  the  superstitions  and 
sentiments  born  in  her,  and  nurtured  by  the  ig- 
norant women  about  her. 

Radha  appreciated  something  of  all  this  her- 
self. She  had  been  led  to  introspection,  and  the 
analysis  of  her  thoughts  and  motives  by  the  ques- 
tioning of  her  father  and  some  of  her  teachers. 
After  puzzling  himself  for  some  time  over  her  in- 
consistencies, Frank  one  day  ventured  to  speak 
of  the  matter  to  her. 

"  Radha,  how  is  it  that  you  talk  as  though  you 
believe  the  strange  tales  and  superstitions  of 
this  country  while  you  are  a  Christian?  " 

"Why  shouldn't  I?"  she  replied,  fencing. 
"  Don't  Christian  people  in  the  West  believe  in 
Santa  Glaus,  and  all  sorts  of  superstitions  about 
lucky  and  unlucky  days  and  numbers?  " 

"  Oh,  but  only  children  believe  in  Saint  Nick, 
and  your  education  ought  to  keep  you  from  all 
superstitions,  whether  of  the  kind  prevalent  here 
or  in  my  country,"  said  Stanton. 

She  laughed  a  low,  rippling  laugh.  "  It  does," 
she  said,  "  when  I  stop  to  think  and  give  it  a 
start.  But  it  is  usually  only  in  unimportant 
things  that  I  do  it,  and  not  even  then  when  my 
inclinations  lead  me  after  my  instincts." 

"  But  that  isn't  reasonable,"  protested  the  man. 

"  Of  course  not,"  she  admitted,  "  but  I  am 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  87 

only  part  reason,  so  why  should  that  part  of  me 
rule  the  whole  time?  " 

"  Surely  it  is  better  to  have  one  safe  faculty 
reign  always  than  to  let  them  take  turns  indis- 
criminately, and  run  the  risk  of  anarchy,"  he 
urged. 

"  Ah,  but  now  you  are  not  talking  like  a  good 
American,"  cried  the  girl  quickly.  "  Why  not 
have  a  good  democracy  such  as  you  believe  in  for 
your  nation?  " 

She  was  demonstrating  in  the  contest  that 
cold  reason  is  not  everything.  He  could  not 
corner  her.  But  having  successfully  resisted 
conquest,  she  was,  womanlike,  ready  for  volun- 
tary surrender. 

"  No  doubt  you  are  right,"  she  confessed ;  "  but 
how  hard  it  is  to  act  so  always,  even  when  we 
want  to.  When  inclination  is  the  other  way,  how 
hopeless  the  case  is  for  poor  reason.  Is  it  not 
Boswell  who  tells  us  that  '  Dr.  Johnson  once  ob- 
served, that  the  force  of  our  early  habits  was  so 
great  that  though  reason  approved,  nay,  though 
our  senses  relished  a  different  course,  almost 
every  man  returned  to  them  '?  " 

To  tell  the  truth,  all  that  the  young  man  evef 
knew  of  Dr.  Johnson  was  what  he  had  read,  and 
forgotten,  in  a  few  pages  of  a  text-book  on  Eng- 
lish literature.  But  that  was  a  truth  he  did  not 


88  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

care  to  tell  to  the  Bengali  girl  who  could  quote 
so  aptly.  Forgetting  the  theology  which  taught 
him  to  believe  that  even  though  the  leopard  could 
not  change  his  spots,  nor  the  Ethiopian  his  skin, 
there  is  a  Power  that  can  figuratively  do  both  in 
man's  regeneration,  he  answered  her  in  astonish- 
ment. 

"  It  is  a  wonder,  then,  that  you  are  a  Chris- 
tian." 

"  That,"  she  said  reverently,  "  is  the  result  of 
reason,  and  of  faith  and  love  that  followed 
reason."  Then  she  added  with  a  little  sigh.  "  I 
often  think  that  in  all  my  impulses,  and  in  my 
love  of  the  traditions  and  customs  of  my  country, 
I  am  not  Christian,  but  heathen." 

The  girl  was  right  in  most  that  she  said.  The 
blood  of  her  ancestors,  and  the  training  of  her 
childhood  had  fixed  the  trend  of  her  life.  Only 
when  it  came  sharply  into  conflict  with  her  prin- 
ciples acquired  in  later  life  was  there  hope  that 
it  could  be  changed. 

Radha's  childhood  had  been  very  happy,  and 
all  her  life  had  been  sheltered  and  protected. 
With  a  rose  planted  at  every  step  of  her  early 
life,  was  it  not  certain  that  later  days  would  be 
spent  in  a  wilderness  of  flowers?  Alas!  there 
were  many  thorns  among  the  roses.  What 
wonder,  then,  if  in  the  after  days,  as  she  wan* 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  89 

dered  among  the  flowers,  thinking  only  of  their 
beauty  and  perfume,  many  cruel  thorns  tore  her 
little  hands  and  feet. 

Meanwhile,  the  young  Kentuckian  and  the  Ben- 
gali girl  were  much  together.  She  seemed  to  him 
a  fascinating  child.  She  was  not  yet  eighteen, 
and  small  of  stature  and  slight  of  form,  even 
though  beautifully  developed,  as  all  Bengali 
women  are  at  an  early  age.  Her  manners  were 
simple  and  artless  with  the  young  man  who  had 
become  one  of  the  household  and  her  daily  in- 
timate. To  the  dear  girl  who  was  waiting  for 
him  beyond  the  seas  Stanton  wrote  charming  de- 
scriptions of  his  new  friend,  and  accounts  of  their 
talks  and  drives  together.  It  was  all  good  com- 
radeship and  brotherliness  on  his  part,  towards 
this  little,  dark  stranger. 

As  for  her,  it  was  a  new  experience  to  associate 
with  a  young  man.  Social  life  was  exceedingly 
limited  for  her.  Practically  all  the  girls  of  the 
land  were  married  and  secluded  in  their  hus- 
bands' homes  as  mere  children.  Intercourse  be- 
tween men  and  women  was  unheard  of.  This 
genial,  handsome  man,  with  his  easy  manners, 
meeting  her  in  the  free  and  friendly  way  that  his 
dwelling  under  the  same  roof  made  natural,  in- 
troduced her  to  a  world  of  thoughts  and  feelings 
hitherto  undreamed  of.  Whether  listening  to 


90  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

him  preaching  in  some  church,  or  talking  with 
him  as  they  sat  together  in  the  library,  or  walked 
or  drove  in  the  park,  it  was  with  an  admiration 
for  him  that  soon  deepened  into  adoration. 

Something  of  what  his  life  was  coming  to  mean 
to  her  dawned  upon  her  one  evening,  just  at  sun- 
set, as  they  were  talking  together.  To  Frank  it 
was  another  proof  of  the  power  of  superstitious 
fancies  over  Radha's  mind.  When  viewed  in  the 
light  of  later  events,  the  incident  may  serve  as  an 
indication  that  there  are,  indeed,  more  things  in 
heaven  and  on  earth  than  are  dreamed  of  in  men's 
philosophies.  . 

The  day  had  been  hot.  As  the  library 
darkened,  Stanton  had  laid  aside  his  books  and 
gone  up  to  the  terrace,  or  flat  roof  of  the  house. 
There  he  discovered  Radha,  leaning  upon  the  rail- 
ing, and  gazing  out  upon  the  sunset  sky.  When 
he  came  upon  her  he  thought  what  a  pretty  pic- 
ture she  made  there.  In  her  great,  dark  eyes 
there  was  a  faraway  look.  The  breeze  was  gently 
tossing  her  hair.  Her  chin  was  resting  in  the 
palm  of  one  hand,  while  the  other  arm  stretched 
along  the  wide  railing. 

"  Isn't  it  beautiful,"  Frank  said,  as  he  watched 
the  deepening  glow  in  the  western  sky. 

There  were  a  few  clouds  on  the  horizon,  and 
the  sunset  was  unusually  gorgeous  for  Calcutta,. 


"Oh,  she  said,  it  is  an  evil  omen  of  a  blot  upon  your  life." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  91 

There,  as  elsewhere  in  India,  there  is  little  after- 
glow or  twilight  after  the  sun  is  down. 

As  the  girl  said  nothing,  Stanton  divided  his 
attention  between  her  and  the  sky  for  a  moment. 
Then  he  spoke  again. 

"  A  penny  for  your  thoughts." 

She  looked  up  rather  shyly,  but  replied  with 
her  usual  artlessness. 

"  I  was  thinking  just  now  that  this  beautiful 
sky  is  like  the  life  you  are  living,  it  is  so  full  of 
brightness.  And  see,"  she  cried,  pointing  to  the 
changing  tints  in  the  west,  "  as  it  gets  older  it 
grows  more  splendid." 

He  smiled  at  her  childlike  fancy,  and  watched 
the  sky  as  she  pointed.  Suddenly,  when  the  tints 
were  of  burnished  gold  and  richest  amber,  a 
great  smoke-stack  far  across  the  intervening 
house-tops,  and  the  sea  of  low,  tiled  huts,  belched 
forth  a  column  of  black  smoke  that  threw  its  blot 
athwart  the  glory  of  the  heavens.  With  a  startled 
cry,  the  girl  covered  her  eyes. 

"  Oh,"  she  said,  "  it  is  an  evil  omen  of  a  blot 
upon  your  life." 

Though  he  laughed  at  her,  she  turned  away  and 
would  not  look  towards  the  west  again.  In  a  few 
moments  she  complained  of  the  damp  and  cool- 
ness, and  went  down  into  the  house. 


92  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


CHAPTER  VI 

ECHOES  OF  BYGONE  TIMES 

THERE  were  often  many  days  when  Frank  and 
Radha  saw  little  of  each  other.  His  was  a  busy 
life,  with  his  study  and  preaching.  Nor  was  the 
girl  an  idler.  She  spent  much  time  in  charitable 
work  amongst  the  poor  of  her  people.  Usually, 
she  accompanied  Mrs.  Clifford  when  that  lady 
went  about  in  the  homes  of  well-to-do  Bengalis, 
visiting  and  teaching  their  wives. 

Often,  however,  there  were  evenings  when  they 
were  together  in  the  library  while  he  studied 
Bengali  and  appealed  to  her  for  aid.  Commonly 
they  were  alone  on  such  occasions,  for  the  other 
members  of  the  household  had  duties  elsewhere. 
Upon  rare  occasions  Stanton  was  at  leisure  in 
the  afternoons  when  the  ladies  went  driving  on 
the  Maidan.  He  would  then  accompany  them. 
After  driving  about  until  nearly  dusk,  the  car- 
riage would  halt  near  the  band-stand  in  the  Eden 
Gardens.  Whilst  Mrs.  Clifford  either  sat  in  tne 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  93 

carriage  listening  to  the  music,  or  went  with  her 
child  and  the  ayah  as  the  little  one  ran  about  on 
the  grass,  Frank  and  Eadha  often  strolled  to- 
gether in  the  Garden. 

The  girl  had  come  to  look  eagerly  forward  to 
such  golden  hours.  They  were  doubly  precious  to 
her,  because  they  enabled  her  at  once  to  enjoy  and 
to  help  the  man  whose  presence  thrilled  her.  The 
maternal  instinct  in  women  makes  them  hap- 
piest when  mothering  the  objects  of  their  love. 
Towards  the  men  who  win  their  hearts,  this  takes 
the  form  of  efforts  to  make  themselves  useful  and 
indispensable  to  them.  Radha  was  proud  to  be 
able  to  help  Frank  in  his  struggle  with  her  native 
tongue.  She  was  glad  to  have  him  ask  about 
everything  of  interest  in  the  city.  Especially 
was  she  delighted  to  show  her  race  in  the  most 
favorable  light  when  talking  over  its  history.  In 
that  she  was  prompted  by  the  patriotism  her 
father  had  kindled  in  her  heart,  as  well  as  by  the 
more  or  less  clearly  perceived  thought  that  she 
might  thus  enhance  the  man's  respect  for  her. 

Stanton  appreciated  her  aid  and  enjoyed  her 
society.  It  was  pleasant  to  argue  with  her  and 
draw  her  out  in  defense  of  the  people  and  cus- 
toms of  her  land.  There  was  no  better  way  to 
learn  the  thought  of  her  people,  and  it  was  in- 
teresting to  watch  the  girl  as  she  earnestly  and 


94  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

vivaciously  talked.  In  his  desire  to  be  with  her, 
he  was  conscious  of  nothing  beyond  the  pleasure 
of  such  intercourse,  and  an  affection  of  a  kind 
that  he  might  have  offered  to  a  younger  sister. 
Of  course,  of  the  fires  he  was  causing  to  glow  in 
the  warm  heart  of  that  child  of  the  tropics  he 
knew  nothing. 

They  were  driving  through  Lower  Chitpore 
Road  one  day,  on  the  way  to  Chowringhi  Road 
and  the  park.  Narrow,  crowded,  dirty,  mal- 
odorous— the  street  was  not  one  to  choose  for  a 
pleasure  drive. 

"  Oh,  dear,"  cried  Mrs.  Clifford,  "  why  did  the 
coachman  come  this  way  instead  of  going  down 
College  Street.  That  is  bad  enough." 

"  I  notice,"  said  Frank,  "  that  he  always  comes 
this  way  if  he  isn't  told  to  go  the  other  road.  He 
seems  to  like  this  dirt." 

"  This  isn't  dirt  to  him,"  said  Radha.  "  You 
should  have  seen  Calcutta  in  the  old  days  that  I 
have  heard  father  talk  about.  He  never  saw 
them,  but  the  stories  have  come  down  in  the 
family.  That  was  before  the  English  really  took 
things  in  hand." 

a  Could  it  have  been  worse  than  this  street, 
and  these  lanes?  Look  yonder."  Mrs.  Clifford 
pointed  down  a  filthy  lane. 

The  wretched  huts  were  crowded  closely  to- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  95 

gether.  Men  and  women  were  jostling  to  and  fro. 
Naked  children  screamed  and  scampered  about. 
Mud  and  rubbish  were  everywhere.  The  carcass 
of  a  dog  was  being  devoured  by  kites  and  crows. 

"  But  my  people  were  here  when  the  whole  city 
was  far  worse,"  the  girl  replied.  "  After  the 
British  established  their  trading  center  here,  the 
people  crowded  in  by  thousands.  They  would  get 
a  little  bit  of  land,  dig  a  deep  hole  on  one  part  of 
it,  and  make  a  house  out  of  the  mud  dug  up. 
Then  they  would  let  the  hole  fill  with  water  in  the 
rains,  and  wash  in  it,  and  drink  it,  and  cook  with 
it  all  the  year.  The  most  of  the  country  about 
was  a  swamp  and  a  jungle.  Bodies  of  all  kinds 
of  dead  animals  were  thick  along  the  river,  and 
even  in  the  streets.  Why,  my  father's  grand- 
father used  to  see  the  bodies  of  beggars,  who  had 
died  of  want  and  disease,  lying  in  the  streets 
until  the  vultures  and  jackals  devoured  them. 
No  wonder  nearly  everybody  died  in  those  old 
days.  Wasn't  it  horrible?  " 

"  Doesn't  that  prove  that  the  Indians  are  not 
civilized? "  Frank  asked,  with  a  sly  wink  at 
Mrs.  Clifford.  "  No  doubt  it  would  be  as  bad  now 
if  the  English  would  let  your  people  have  their 
way." 

"  No,  they  are  not  uncivilized,"  Radha  insist- 
ed. "  The  lower  classes  are  always  dirty  if  let 


96  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

alone.  And  it  is  not  so  very  long  ago  that  things 
were  nearly  as  bad  in  England.  My  people  were 
slower  in  developing,  and  have  not  the  practical, 
organizing  ability  of  the  English.  But  they  had 
philosophy  and  literature  much  earlier." 

By  that  time  they  were  rolling  along  the  wide, 
smooth  roads  of  the  Maidan.  To  their  left  were 
the  stately  mansions  of  wealthy  Europeans.  On 
the  right  hand  flowed  the  broad  river  upon  which 
were  anchored  many  great  ships.  Farther  south 
frowned  the  lofty  walls  of  Fort  William.  Along 
the  roads,  traps  and  carriages  of  every  sort  sped 
hither  and  thither,  drawn  by  imported  thorough- 
bred horses.  On  the  level,  green  turf,  gentlemen 
were  playing  cricket  and  tennis.  The  cool,  fresh 
air  was  blowing  softly  from  the  south.  Fash- 
ionable Calcutta  had  done  its  day's  work,  and 
was  out  for  rest  and  recreation. 

"  This  is  living !  "  Frank  exclaimed.  Then 
they  all  drew  deep  breaths,  and  settled  back  in 
their  seats  to  enjoy  it  to  the  full  in  silence. 

Later,  they  drove  to  the  Eden  Gardens  at  the 
northern  end  of  the  Maidan,  and  stretching  from 
it  to  the  grounds  and  palace  of  the  Viceroy. 
There,  every  evening  in  the  year,  a  band  plays, 
while  people  by  the  hundred  sit  in  their  carriages, 
or  wander  amongst  the  trees  and  flowers  listening 
to  the  music. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  97 

Badha  and  Frank  left  the  carriage  and  strolled 
over  to  the  Burmese  Pagoda  and  sat  down. 
Flowers  filled  the  air  with  heavy  perfume.  The 
plash  of  fountains  blended  with  the  more  distant 
music  of  the  military  band.  Dusk  was  falling, 
and  the  roadways  were  being  outlined  by  electric 
lights  and  gas  lamps.  Between  the  rows  of  lights, 
like  a  myriad  brilliant  fireflies,  darted  the  lan- 
terns of  moving  carriages. 

"  No  wonder  they  call  it  Eden  Garden,"  the 
young  man  said. 

"  It  is  not  named  for  Adam's  garden,  though," 
Radha  told  him.  "  The  Edens  were  one  of  the 
early  English  families  in  Calcutta.  The  two 
Eden  sisters  gave  these  grounds  to  the  city." 

"  All  this  seems  so  little  like  what  I  expected 
to  find  in  India."  Stanton  said.  "  Nothing  could 
be  more  enchanting.  Has  the  country  anything 
to  equal  it  that  the  English  didn't  make?  " 

"  Yes,  some  of  the  Rajahs'  parks,"  the  girl 
made  answer.  "  And  wait  till  you  see  the  Taj  by 
moonlight.  One  night,  at  full  moon,  I  sat  with 
Father,  looking  at  it  for  three  hours,  and  neither 
of  us  spoke  a  word.  We  were  upon  the  raised 
marble  platform  where  the  fountain  plays  in  the 
garden.  We  were  there  early,  when  no  one  else 
was  near,  and  it  was  very  still.  About  ten  o'clock 
many  people  came,  and  a  band  began  to  play. 


98  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

The  music  sounded  far  away,  stealing  upon  us 
through  the  trees.  It  seemed  like  a  dream,  or  a 
glimpse  into  fairyland.  Had  it  all  melted  away, 
or  slowly  risen  to  the  skies,  I  should  not  have  felt 
surprised.  But  I  cannot  tell  you  about  it ;  no  one 
can.  You  will  know  when  you  see." 

"  I  hope  you  can  be  there  too,  and  help  me  en- 
joy it,  little  girl,"  he  said. 

It  made  her  heart  leap.  She  could  not  know 
that  he  was  thinking  they  would  all  go  and  see  it 
together  after  Mabel  had  come  to  him  from  Ken- 
tucky. He  had  never  mentioned  his  betrothed  to 
Radha.  That  was  not  strange,  for  he  never 
talked  of  her  to  anyone,  not  even  his  own  mother. 
No  one  in  India  knew  anything  of  his  private 
affairs. 

There  are  two  classes  of  people  who  do  not 
speak  of  such  matters — those  whose  love  is  very 
shallow,  and  those  whose  love  is  deep.  The  one 
class  think  nothing  of  wife  or  sweetheart  when 
absent  from  her.  The  other  think  with  a  depth 
of  devotion  that  shrinks  from  public  expression. 
Just  as  some  men  cannot  bear  to  express  their 
thought  of  God  because  their  lives  make  them 
dread  Him;  while  others  cannot,  because  a  holy 
reverence  seals  their  lips. 

Stanton  was  of  the  latter  type.  When  the  lads 
at  college  had  talked  of  the  lassies  who  happened 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  99 

to  b'e  temporarily  enshrined  in  their  hearts,  he 
had  always  been  silent.  They  had  known  enough 
of  his  visits  to  the  Everest  home  to  draw  their 
own  conclusions.  One  day  they  had  pinned  on 
his  back  a  paper  inscribed — 

'  I  am  in  love,  but  a  team  of  horses 
Shall  not  pluck  that  from  me, 
Nor  who  'tis  I  love.' 

He  had  flushed  with  angry  embarrassment 
when  he  found  why  all  the  boys  laughed  as  he 
walked  down  the  chapel  aisle  with  the  placard  on 
his  back.  But  he  had  never  said  anything  about 
it. 

So  he  never  thought  of  speaking  to  any  of  his 
friends  in  India  of  the  affairs  of  his  heart.  Alas 
that  unconscious  virtue  often  seems  to  work  as 
much  harm  in  the  world  as  conscious  vice !  Had 
the  Wise  Man  some  such  thought  in  mind  when 
he  wrote — "  Be  not  righteous  overmuch  .  .  . 
.  .  for  why  shouldst  thou  destroy  thyself?  " 

As  the  darkness  gathered,  the  young  people 
made  their  way  back  to  the  carriage.  Mrs.  Clif- 
ford soon  ordered  the  coachman  to  drive  home. 

"  And  not  through  Bentinck  Street,  and  Lower 
Chitpore,"  she  added.  "  Go  out  Dhurrumtullah 
to  Wellington  Street." 

It  was  one  of  the  disadvantages  of  living  where 


ioo  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

they  did,  that  to  get  from  the  pure  air  of  the 
Maidan  they  had  to  drive  through  a  long  stretch 
of  streets  that  were  bad  at  best.  Though  far 
removed  from  the  bottomless  filth  of  the  earlier 
days  of  the  city,  or  even  of  the  places  then  to  be 
found  off  the  broader  thoroughfares,  those  streets 
were  neither  quiet  nor  savory.  The  ubiquitous 
population  was  thronging  everywhere.  Beggars 
importuned  aid  at  every  turn,  reinforcing  their 
cries  by  an  exhibition  of  sightless  eyes,  mangled 
stumps  of  arms  and  legs,  and  leprosy-eaten  hands 
and  faces. 

To  Frank,  with  his  strong  nerves,  the  streets 
were  of  perennial  interest.  The  little  bazars  and 
shops,  with  no  fronts  to  intercept  the  view, 
showed  all  sorts  of  craftsmen  at  work. 

"  There  is  a  piece  of  Inferno,"  he  exclaimed,  as 
they  passed  a  group  of  shops  where,  in  the  lurid 
glow  of  their  fires,  were  seen  the  shining  brown 
bodies  of  the  workmen  squatting  like  monkeys 
over  their  work.  They  were  making  Bengali 
sweets,  or  baking  great  chappaties,  or  blowing 
rude  little  glass  lamps. 

"  I'm  sure  the  imps  of  the  lower  regions  will 
look  like  that,"  he  added. 

After  studying  the  street  scenes  in  silence  for 
a  time,  he  said,  "  There  is  one  thing  I  must  do 
before  I  am  many  days  older.  That  is  to  visit  all 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  101 

the  landmarks  of  early  Calcutta.  Won't  you 
ladies  show  them  to  me  some  day?  " 

"  Radha  will,  I  know,"  said  Mrs.  Clifford. 
"She  knows  them  all,  and  I  don't;  and  she 
doesn't  mind  poking  around  in  the  heat  as  I  do." 

So  it  was  agreed  that  they  two  should  make 
the  round  together  on  the  first  free  day  he  could 
find  from  his  work. 

That  night  the  girl  dreamed  that  she  sat  with 
Frank  in  the  glorious  moonlight  at  Agra.  But 
as  they  gazed  in  rapt  wonder  upon  the  snowy 
beauty  of  the  Taj,  it  slowly  dissolved  before  them. 
Then  in  a  moment  there  yawned  in  its  place  a 
cavernous  depth  in  which  she  saw  countless 
dreadful  imps  dancing  about  sulphurous  fires. 
When  she  turned  to  Frank  for  help,  she  found 
to  her  horror  that  he  had  changed  into  a  fiery 
demon  who  seized  her  and  dragged  her  down  into 
the  flames.  She  awoke  with  terrified  cries,  and 
was  not  comforted  even  when  she  knew  that  it 
was  but  a  dream. 

During  the  next  week  they  found  a  day  in 
which  to  explore  the  city.  Calcutta  has  in  it 
many  things  of  interest,  but  very  little  of  anti- 
quarian value.  It  is  so  distressingly  new  when 
compared  with  places  like  Delhi  and  Agra,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  far  older  temples  of  southern  In- 
dia. When  the  English  traders  established  their 


102  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

station  there  in  1686,  there  were  just  a  few  strag- 
gling villages  in  the  area  now  embraced  by  the 
capital  city  and  its  suburbs.  Those  villages 
boasted  neither  temple  nor  mosque  of  any  im- 
portance. 

Perhaps  the  shrine  of  Kali  Ghat  should  be 
excepted.  It  stands1  near  a  narrow  stream  that 
was  once  the  channel  of  the  Ganges.  Its  gro- 
tesque idol  is  worshiped  by  thousands  of  pilgrims 
who  come  from  near  and  far.  From  the  goddess 
and  her  ghat  the  name  of  the  city  seems  to  have 
been  derived.  Far  back  in  the  dim  centuries 
when  were  written  those  great  Sanskrit  epics,  the 
Ramayana  and  the  Mahabharata,  the  temple  was 
there.  But  that  was  certainly  not  the  present 
structure.  Other  Hindu  temple  of  consequence 
there  is  none.  The  chief  mosque,  that  of  Ghulam 
Mohammed,  and  the  elaborate  Jain  temple  are 
not  old. 

Of  course,  there  is  nothing  really  ancient 
amongst  the  many  noble  buildings,  and  statues, 
and  gardens  belonging  to  the  British  era.  Nor 
are  there  even  many  places  dating  back  to  the 
first  days  of  the  English  occupancy.  Hence  it 
was  not  an  overly  difficult  task  to  view  the  few 
landmarks  of  old  Calcutta. 

There  was  old  St.  John's  Church,  destroyed  in 
the  terrible  days  of  1756,  but  restored  later. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  103 

"  It  was  the  English  cathedral  for  many  years." 
Radha  told  Frank.  "  Where  the  present  cathe- 
dral now  stands,  Warren  Hastings  and  others 
used  to  hunt  tigers  in  an  almost  trackless 
jungle." 

They  drove  along  the  west  side  of  Dalhousie 
Square,  with  its  large  and  beautiful  tank.  It 
is  now  surrounded  by  many  of  the  noblest  public 
buildings  and  business  houses  to  be  found  in 
India. 

"  Before  the  water-works  were  built,"  the  girl 
explained,  "  this  tank  used  to  be  one  of  the  chief 
sources  of  water  supply  for  the  city.  It  is  said 
to  be  quite  pure  even  yet.  And  the  park  around 
it  was  once  the  favorite  afternoon  resort  for  fash- 
ionable Calcutta,  as  Eden  Garden  is  now." 

Driving  to  the  General  Post  Office,  they  left 
their  carriage  to  explore  the  boundaries  of  the 
old  Fort  William.  It  was  begun  in  1696.  In 
1818  it  was  demolished,  after  having  been  aban- 
I  doned  for  the  new  fort.  Then  the  present  Custom 
]  House  and  other  buildings  were  erected  on  the 
old  site.  Thus  the  places  of  chief  interest,  includ- 
ing the  Black  Hole,  were  swept  away  and  for- 
gotten. 

The  early  American  settlers  usually  began 
their  work  by  cutting  down  all  the  trees  on  their 
land  to  get  a  "  clearing  "  for  house  and  fields. 


104  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Then  when  trees  were  scarce  enough  to  be  prized, 
their  successors  set  out  saplings  and  waited 
through  shadeless  years  for  them  to  grow  large 
and  cast  a  grateful  shadow.  So  most  men  demol- 
ish places  that  else  would  come  to  be  of  priceless 
historic  value,  and  leave  later  comers  to  discover, 
as  best  they  can,  the  spots  where  once  they  stood. 

By  such  a  process  the  Black  Hole  passed  out 
of  existence,  and  the  memory  of  it  perished.  The 
very  monument  erected  by  the  chief  survivor  of 
the  tragedy  to  the  memory  of  his  less  fortunate 
companions,  fell  into  decay  and  oblivion. 

Near  the  entrance  to  the  driveway  in  the  rear 
of  the  Post  Office,  Radha  pointed  out  the  sup- 
posed site  of  the  notorious  death  trap.  It  is 
marked  now  by  a  pavement  of  black  marble  sur- 
rounded by  a  railing  of  iron,  while  a  brass  tablet 
set  in  the  wall  of  the  building  standing  upon  the 
northern  boundary  of  the  spot  tells  the  story  of 
the  horror.  A  few  years  later  than  the  time  Stan- 
ton  was  there,  a  reproduction  of  the  original 
monument  was  set  up  in  the  street  near  by. 
After  viewing  the  site  and  discussing  the  history 
of  the  Black  Hole  for  a  few  moments,  the  young 
people  walked  to  the  other  spots  marked  as  the 
chief  boundaries  of  the  old  fort. 

"  Why,  how  can  this  be  the  location  of  the  wall 
nearest  the  river?  "  asked  Stanton.  "  I  am  sure 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  105 

I  have  seen  old  pictures  that  show  the  gate  open- 
ing right  on  the  river  bank.  Look  how  far  this 
is  from  the  water." 

"  Yes,  but  the  river  channel  has  greatly 
changed  since  then,"  replied  his  guide.  "  You 
remember  the  great  archway  on  the  Maidan 
called  Princeps  Ghat?  Well,  that  was  once  a 
landing,  but  it  is  high  and  dry  now.  In  the  old 
days  the  river  ran  close  by  here.  From  here  some 
of  the  people  escaped  easily  to  the  ships  before 
the  fort  fell.  As  the  channel  changed  the  land 
here  was  made  and  built  upon." 

"  We  must  go  home  now,"  said  Stanton.  "  It 
is  getting  too  hot  for  this  sort  of  thing." 

On  the  way  home  he  began  to  talk  about  those 
old  days  of  trouble,  and  the  part  played  in 
them  by  the  natives  of  the  land.  When  they  were 
at  last  comfortably  seated  on  the  shady  veranda, 
he  opened  a  discussion  with  the  girl,  partly  to 
gain  information,  and  partly  to  hear  her  plead 
the  cause  of  her  people. 

"  Little  Indian  maiden,"  he  said  playfully,  "  I 
could  think  better  of  this  country  if  it  were  not 
for  the  Black  Hole  and  the  Mutiny." 

Radha  puckered  her  brows  prettily,  as  was  her 
habit  when  taking  up  an  argument.  "  Did  you 
ever  hear  the  fable  of  the  Man  and  the  Lion?" 
she  asked. 


io6  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  Can't  say  that  I  ever  did;  or  at  least  I  do  not 
recall  it." 

"  Well,  a  man  and  a  lion  once  walked  together 
in  a  forest.  They  fell  into  a  war  of  words  trying 
to  prove  which  had  superior  strength.  Chancing 
to  come  upon  a  marble  statue  representing  a  man 
strangling  a  lion — '  Behold,'  cried  the  man,  *  that 
shows  which  is  the  stronger.'  l  Ah/  said  the  lion, 
'  a  man  made  the  statue.  When  lions  carve 
statues,  you  will  see  the  lion  shown  victorious.' 
Now,  all  you  know  of  the  history  of  those  affairs 
was  most  probably  written  by  the  English." 

"  Do  you  think  the  true  history  of  1756  and  a 
century  later  creditable  to  your  people? "  he 
asked. 

"  Perhaps  not  very  creditable  to  either  side. 
But  there  must  be  some  things  that  would  appear 
in  a  different  light  if  written  from  the  Indian 
point  of  view.  I  have  heard  you  complain,  in 
talking  to  Mrs.  Clifford  about  the  American  Civil 
War,  that  she  knew  it  only  from  the  Northern 
historians." 

"  What,  then,  can  you,  as  an  Indian,  suggest 
on  your  side  of  the  case?  "  he  questioned. 

"  I  should  say,  first  of  all,  that,  like  every  other 
war,  they  were  cruel  affairs  which  the  people 
of  peaceful  Bengal  would  hate.  Then  I  should 
like  you  to  keep  in  mind  that  they  were  largely 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  107 

conducted  by  our  Mohammedan  conquerors,  and 
not  by  our  Hindu  people." 

"  So  far,  so  good,"  said  Frank  encouragingly. 
"What  next?" 

"  Why,  chiefly,  that  it  was  only  natural  for 
the  people  to  drive  their  European  conquerors 
from  the  land  if  they  could.  Had  they  succeeded 
in  gaining  and  keeping  their  independence,  the 
world  would  have  applauded.  I  have  heard  you 
say  that  the  difference  between  an  accursed  re- 
bellion, and  a  laudable  revolution  is  that  one  fails 
and  the  other  succeeds." 

"  But  the  English  were  surely  the  benefactors 
of  the  country,"  he  urged.  "  To  say  nothing  of 
the  reforms  they  have  introduced,  the  Hindu 
people  should  be  especially  grateful  to  them  for 
removing  the  Mohammedan  yoke." 

"  No  one  ever  wants  improvements  thrust 
upon  him,  especially  if  they  are  to  improve  him 
or  his  prerogatives  out  of  existence.  That  is 
what  the  leaders  of  the  people  foresaw.  It  is 
easier,  too,  for  the  people  to  see  the  benefits  of 
English  rule  now  than  it  was  a  century  and  a 
half  before  those  benefits  came  into  existence. 
As  for  the  Mohammedans,"  Radha  continued, 
"  their  power  was  weakening,  and  our  Hindu 
kinsmen  from  the  west,  the  Mahrattas,  would 
certainly  have  subjugated  them  in  a  little  while," 


io8  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  Would  your  people  like  to  be  rid  of  England? 
Do  you  wish  the  Mutiny  had  succeeded? "  he 
asked. 

She  shrugged  her  shoulders.  "  As  for  the  old 
regime,"  she  said,  "  I  remember  hearing  Father 
say,  a  long  time  ago,  that  as  Charles  Lamb  some- 
where suggests,  we  may  be  sentimentally  inclined 
to  the  harmony  of  those  bygone  time,  but  organic- 
ally incapable  of  the  tune.  The  wisest  men 
among  us  believe,  as  Father  did,  that  it  has 
proved  best  that  the  English  remained  here.  But 
they  all  long  for  the  day  when  we  shall  not  need 
ttieir  help." 

"  So  you  think  your  people  were  not  bad  in 
1856?"  Frank  asked  by  way  of  returning  to  the 
original  discussion. 

"  I  think  a  few  Mohammedan  leaders  were 
largely  responsible  for  the  trouble,"  Radha  said. 
"  Considering  how  natural  it  is  for  a  people  to 
desire  to  be  free  from  a  foreign  yoke,  it  is  wonder- 
ful how  few  of  my  countrymen  rose  against  the 
British.  Even  the  prince  of  the  great  Mahratta 
house  that  England  had  subdued,  did  not  rebel. 
At  a  time  when  things  looked  very  dark,  he 
marched  into  Agra  with  his  army  to  offer  his 
services  to  the  conquerors  of  his  land." 

Stanton  was  surprised,  though  not  for  the  first 
time,  at  the  girl's  information  and  resources,  and 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  109 

also  at  her  use  of  the  English  language.  He  did 
not  realize  how  natural  it  is  for  educated  Ben- 
galis to  speak  '  book  English.'  They  learn  no 
other,  and  are  free  from  contact  with  ignorant 
persons  whose  slang  and  inaccuracies  corrupt 
the  speech  of  our  people  from  early  childhood. 

"  That's  a  very  fair  view  of  the  Mutiny,"  he  ad- 
mitted. But  what  of  the  Black  Hole?  Think  of 
those  one  hundred  and  forty-six  poor  creatures 
penned  all  night  in  an  underground  room  twenty 
feet  square,  and  that  at  the  hottest  season  of  the 
year!  It's  a  marvel  to  me  that  even  twenty  of 
them  got  out  alive  in  the  morning." 

"  It  was  horrible,"  she  cried.  "  I  do  not  like 
to  think  about  it." 

But  he  pressed  her  to  the  discussion.  "  You 
can  surely  think  of  no  mitigating  circumstances 
there." 

"  Who  built  the  Black  Hole?  "  she  asked  after 
a  moment's  thought. 

He  confessed  that  he  had  never  thought  to  in- 
quire. 

"  It  was  the  English  themselves,  and  they  built 
it  as  a  prison  to  punish  their  own  soldiers  in. 
The  room  was  not  under  ground,  but  it  was  a 
low  chamber  back  under  a  veranda,  where  little 
air  or  light  could  get  through  the  small,  barred 
windows.  The  soldiers  themselves  called  it  the 


no  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Black  Hole  from  the  first.  It  was  European  bar- 
barity that  made  the  trap." 

"  But  nobody  ever  tried  to  put  over  a  hundred 
soldiers  in  it,"  he  persisted. 

"  That  was  at  first  more  of  a  blunder  than  a 
crime.  The  native  guards  did  not  know  how 
small  it  was.  The  prisoners  themselves  did  not 
when  they  were  told  to  go  in." 

"  That  should  not  have  prevented  the  guards 
from  letting  them  out  when  they  found  the  pris- 
oners were  suffocating,"  declared  Frank  with 
vigor. 

Radha  smiled  on  him  brightly  as  she  replied — 
"  You  have  not  been  in  the  country  long  enough 
to  know  the  story  they  tell  to  prove  the  native's 
inability  to  take  the  initiative.  There  was  a 
young  Bengali  telegraph  operator  up  the  line  at 
a  little  railway  station  in  the  jungle.  One  eve- 
ning he  went  out  upon  the  platform  and  was 
horrified  to  see  the  stationmaster  struggling  with 
a  huge  tiger.  He  rushed  back  to  his  office  and 
telegraphed  to  the  division  superintendent — 
'  Tiger  eating  stationmaster ;  wire  instructions.' 
Now,  those  guards  had  been  left  there  to  keep  the 
prisoners  in  and  not  to  let  them  out.  So  what 
could  they  do?  Of  course  they  were  cruel,  as 
their  descendants  were  when  they  butchered 
everybody  in  the  Mutiny.  But  how  much  better 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  in 

were  the  English  when  they  ruthlessly  cut  down 
all  rebel  Sepoys,  even  when  they  threw  down 
their  arms  and  fled,  or  begged  for  mercy." 

"  But  why  should  Siraj-ud-Daula  have  at- 
tacked Fort  William  at  all?  His  Emperor 
wanted  the  English  there  for  the  benefit  of  their 
trade." 

"  Oh,  yes,"  said  the  girl,  "  but  it  did  not  require 
much  statesmanship  on  the  part  of  the  Mogul's 
Viceroy  to  see  that  it  would  end,  as  it  has,  in  the 
English  possessing  the  country.  Nor  was  he 
without  excuse.  The  traders  had  harbored  a 
fugitive  from  justice,  and  would  not  give  him 
up.  They  were  enlarging  their  fortifications 
without  permission.  They  were  likely  to  bring 
the  French  armies  upon  the  country  through 
England's  going  to  war  with  that  people." 

"  In  the  whole  affair,  though,"  he  insisted, 
"  did  the  people  of  the  land  show  any  humanity 
whatever?  " 

"  That  they  did,  and  far  more  than  the  Eng- 
lish," Radha  replied  triumphantly.  "  Didn't  the 
English  leave  their  position  exposed  and  tempt 
their  foes  to  attack  them,  simply  because  they 
were  too  stingy  to  spend  a  few  rupees  in  repairs? 
And  when  the  attack  came,  didn't  the  Governor 
and  other  leaders  flee  to  the  ships  in  the  river  and 
desert  the  people  in  the  fort?  Even  some  of  the 


Ii2  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

women  were  left  behind.  And  for  two  days  the 
cowards  lay  just  down  there  by  Hastings  watch- 
ing their  friends'  signals  of  distress,  and  seeing 
them  destroyed  without  coming  to  their  aid." 

The  girl's  dark  eyes  were  flashing.  As  Frank 
watched  her  admiringly,  he  asked — "  Anything 
else?  " 

"  Yes,"  she  answered,  "  to  the  credit  of  my 
kinsmen.  I  want  you  to  know  that  most  of  those 
who  suffered  in  the  Black  Hole  were  not  English 
at  all,  but  poor  people  of  India  who  were  true  to 
them.  And  while  their  friends  stayed  in  comfort 
on  their  ships,  and  let  them  die,  an  old  native  of- 
ficer tried  to  help  them  by  passing  water  into 
their  prison.  Then  there  were  kindly  natives  who 
fed  and  sheltered  the  survivors  who  were  set  free 
and  told  to  leave.  There  is  even  a  story  that  a 
Mohammedan  general  found  some  English  ladies 
during  the  siege,  cared  for  them  till  night,  and 
took  them  in  a  boat  out  to  the  ship  that  had  de- 
serted them  and  others." 

"  Bravo,  little  girl !  "  cried  Frank,  applauding. 
"  I  think  I'll  have  to  admit  hereafter,  that  your 
people  appear  in  rather  a  better  light  than  the 
English,  all  things  considered." 

Radha  felt  well  repaid  for  her  special  pleading 
by  such  a  verdict. 

"  To  end  our  discussion  peaceably,"  said  Stan- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  113 

ton,  "please  tell  me  an  Oriental  tale  that  will 
serve  as  a  moral  to  it  all." 

The  girl  sat  up  very  straight,  and  began  to 
sway  back  and  forth  in  her  chair.  Then  her  eyes 
took  on  a  far-away  look.  She  doubled  over  like 
an  old  woman,  and  began  to  speak  in  a  droning 
voice. 

"  Once  there  lived  a  man  who  had  two  wives. 
One  was  called  Little  Hair  and  the  other,  Less 
Hair.  The  husband  loved  Little  Hair  rather 
than  Less  Hair,  and  so  the  woman  less  beloved 
had  to  serve  the  other. 

"  It  happened  by  accident  one  day,  as  the  un- 
loved wife  was  brushing  the  other's  hair  that  one 
lock  came  out  in  her  hand.  i  Wretch/  cried  the 
favored  one.  *  You  would  make  me  as  hideous  as 
yourself ! '  With  that  she  pulled  all  the  hair  from 
the  hated  wife's  head,  and  drove  her  away  from 
the  house. 

"  Though  full  of  grief  for  her  sad  state,  the 
poor  woman  was  kind  to  every  creature  she  met 
as  she  wandered  about  homeless.  At  last  a  holy 
hermit  sent  for  her  and  blessed  her.  And  his 
blessing  made  her  so  rich  and  beautiful  that  she 
went  back  home  and  became  the  idol  of  her  hus- 
band's heart. 

"  When  Little  Hair  saw  that  she  was  no  longer 
beloved,  she  rested  not  until  she  had  learned  the 


114  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

name  of  the  hermit  who  had  blessed  her  rival. 
Unto  him  she  went  and  begged  of  him  his  bless- 
ing. '  Go/  cried  the  monk,  (  plunge  once  into 
yonder  tank,  and  come  again  to  me/ 

"  Obeying  the  man's  command,  she  rose  from 
the  water  to  find  her  head  covered  with  luxuriant 
hair,  and  her  face  very  fair.  Then  she  cried, 
'  Aha !  I  will  now  plunge  in  again  and  become 
twice  as  beautiful.  So  shall  my  husband  love  me 
once  more,  and  my  hated  rival  shall  serve  me.' 

"  But  when  she  came  again  from  the  water,  her 
hair  was  gone,  her  face  was  wrinkled,  her  form 
was  shriveled.  With  that,  came  the  holy  man 
and  drove  her  with  curses  away.  Thus  she  lived 
ever  after  in  her  husband's  house  as  the  servant 
of  the  good  and  beautiful  one  who  was  his  de- 
light." 

The  girl  paused  and  smiled  at  her  listener. 
"  Can  you  see  the  moral  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Perhaps,"  he  said  cautiously.  "  But  you  bet- 
ter tell  it  to  me,  to  make  sure." 

"If  the  great  English  people  ever  give  them- 
selves up  to  cruelty  in  this  land,  then  will  they 
lose  their  power  and  have  to  serve.  So  from  be- 
ing the  favored  ones,  they  will  become  the  ac- 
cursed of  the  earth."  She  added  mysteriously, 
"  I  have  seen  it  written  in  the  stars." 

"  A  very  good  moral  for  the  English.    Could 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  115 

you  tell  me  another  oracle  that  will  be  for  your 
people?  "  Frank  requested. 

Again  the  girl  went  through  the  strange  mo- 
tions, and  spoke  in  the  monotonous,  uncanny 
tones  she  had  acquired  from  the  old  women  who 
had  taught  her  the  stories. 

"  Once  upon  a  time  an  ass  and  a  jackal  became 
friends.  On  a  certain  night  they  broke  into  a 
garden  and  enjoyed  a  feast  together.  After 
a  while  the  ass  said  to  the  jackal — '  Behold,  my 
dear  friend,  how  fair  is  the  night.  Therefore  I 
will  sing  you  a  song.' 

tl  The  jackal  replied — '  My  dear  fellow,  why 
break  the  stillness  of  the  night?  Thieves  and 
lovers  should  go  softly.  Moreover,  your  voice  is 
not  suited  to  song.  You  will  wake  the  watch- 
man, and  he  will  come  upon  us  to  our  destruction. 
Let  us  feast.' 

"  i  Tut !  Tut ! '  protested  the  ass.  '  You  are  but 
a  jungley  one,  and  know  not  the  magic  of 
music.' 

" l  True  enough,'  acknowledged  the  jackal, 
{ and  I  fear  me  your  own  understanding  of  the  art 
is  faulty.' 

"  '  What,  I  not  know  music?  '  cried  he.  And 
he  talked  at  length  in  explanation  of  the  theory 
of  harmony.  *  Now  you  see  that  I  am  familiar 
with  music,  why  interfere  with  my  singing? ' 


n6  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  '  Sing  on,  then,  good  friend,'  said  his  com- 
panion. (  But  wait  till  I  get  near  the  gate.' 

"  Thereupon  the  jackal  ran,  and  the  ass  began 
loudly  to  bray.  The  watchman  waked  up  and 
captured  him.  After  soundly  beating  him,  he 
fastened  a  heavy  drag  about  his  neck.  When  the 
man  had  gone  to  sleep  again,  the  jackal  drew 
near. 

"  i  Uncle,'  cried  he,  *  you  would  break  forth  in 
song.  Now  you  are  adorned  with  a  jeweled 
necklace  as  a  reward  for  your  solo.' ' 

"  Well,  the  application,  please,"  Frank  pleaded 
as  Radha  paused  and  looked  up. 

"  Whenever  the  young  men  of  my  people  will 
not  be  content  to  enjoy  the  good  things  they  have; 
— whenever  those  who  are  now  learnedly  dis- 
coursing of  the  theory  of  government,  insist  on 
showing  how  well  they  can  displace  the  British 
and  rule  in  their  stead,  then  will  their  rulers 
come  upon  them  and  punish  them,  and  they  shall 
wear  a  heavy  yoke." 

Again  she  added  with  an  air  of  mystery.  "  So 
has  the  god  of  destiny,  the  mighty  Bidhata-Pur- 
usha,  written  it  upon  their  foreheads." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  117 


CHAPTER   VII 

FROM  LIGHT  TO  DARKNESS 

NEARLY  a  year  had  passed  since  Frank  Stan- 
ton's  arrival  in  Calcutta.  He  had  done  good  ser- 
vice, and  had  made  commendable  progress  with 
his  language  study.  Richard  Clifford  had  found 
his  help  valuable.  All  who  met  the  young  man 
were  charmed  by  his  manly  ways.  His  future 
was  full  of  promise  for  a  useful  career  in  a  land 
that  sorely  needed  such  men. 

The  summer  and  the  rainy  season  were  past. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  intense  heat,  Mrs.  Clif- 
ford had  fled  to  Darjiling  with  her  child.  Its 
lofty  summits  were  beyond  the  reach  of  the  fur- 
nace glow  of  the  plains  and  river  valleys.  For  a 
part  of  the  summer,  Frank  had  sought  the  same 
cool  and  beautiful  retreat,  where  he  rested  and 
continued  his  study.  When  the  rains  broke  in 
Bengal,  he  had  gone  down  to  take  charge  ef  the 
work,  while  Clifford  joined  his  wife  in  the  hills. 
Frank  found  those  steamy  months  trying  enough. 


n8  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

But  in  spite  of  prickly-heat,  and  enervation,  he 
vigorously  prosecuted  his  work. 

Radha  had  remained  in  the  city  most  of  the 
time.  There  are  few  Bengalis  who  really  enjoy 
the  high  altitudes  of  the  Himalayas;  they  find  it 
rather  too  cool  there.  She  had  gone  on  short 
visits  up  the  river,  and  to  the  favorite  resort  of 
wealthy  Bengalis  at  Baidyanath.  Attended  by 
her  old  ayah,  and  under  the  nominal  protection 
of  her  elderly  cousin,  the  girl  was  free  to  stay 
at  home  or  visit  friends  elsewhere,  as  she  pleased. 

The  latter  part  of  October  had  now  come.  The 
weather  in  the  metropolis  was  becoming  endur- 
able. Except  in  the  sun,  the  days  were  not  bad, 
and  the  nights  were  cool.  Until  the  end  of  the 
next  February,  the  city  would  be  pleasant,  and 
increasingly  gay.  In  the  Mukerji  home  the  fam- 
ily circle  was  once  more  complete.  Vacation 
days  were  ended,  and  the  season's  work  was  well 
under  way. 

Even  missionaries,  however,  need  to  relax  oc- 
casionally in  order  to  prevent  break-down.  Sun- 
day was  a  busy  day,  but  Clifford  believed  in  al- 
ways taking  a  Sabbath  day's  rest  some  time  dur- 
ing the  week,  if  possible.  To  get  clear  away  from 
the  cares  of  life,  the  whole  family  usually  tried 
to  leave  town  for  the  day.  At  times,  they  would 
go  by  rail  up  to  Serampore,  made  famous  by  the 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  119 

labors  of  William  Carey,  and  the  college  which 
continues  to  perpetuate  his  memory  there.  On 
other  days  they  would  take  one  of  the  small 
steamers  for  an  excursion  up  or  down  the  river. 

Especially  did  they  enjoy  the  trip  up  the 
Hooghly.  Leaving  in  the  early  morning  when  the 
air  upon  the  river  was  positively  chilly  in  mid- 
winter, they  would  go  up  as  far  as  Chandanagar. 
That  town,  with  one  or  two  other  small  patches 
of  territory,  is  all  that  remains  of  France's  pos- 
sessions in  India.  The  banks  of  the  river  are  lined 
almost  all  the  way  with  temples,  bathing  ghats, 
and  the  houses  of  wealthy  natives.  Occasionally, 
great  jute  factories  testify  to  the  presence  of  the 
modern  forces  mingled  with  the  ancient.  In  the 
morning,  every  bathing  ghat  is  full  of  men  and 
women  of  all  ages,  religiously  bathing  and  pray- 
ing in  the  sacred  stream.  They  make  an  odd 
picture  with  their  thin,  scant  robes  clinging  to 
their  wet  bodies.  After  a  pleasant  morning  of 
sightseeing  and  light  reacting,  the  party  would 
land  at  the  French  town  and  go  up  to  the 
'  Thistle.'  There  they  were  sure  of  a  good  tiffin 
and  a  comfortable  lounging  place  on  the  hotel 
veranda,  until  time  for  the  return  boat. 

Or  when  time  or  inclination  failed  for  river  or 
railway  trips,  there  were  drives  and  picnics  to 
various  places.  Dum-Dum,  where  were  made  the 


120  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

cartridges,  greased  with  suet  and  lard,  that  pre- 
cipitated the  terrible  Mutiny,  was  a  place  of  in- 
terest. It  continues  as  a  military  establishment 
where  ammunition  is  manufactured  as  of  yore — 
minus  the  dangerous  lubricant.  Up  the  east  bank 
of  the  river  to  Barrackpore,  the  beautiful  sub- 
urban resort  of  the  Viceroy,  is  another  pleasant 
drive,  though  a  long  one.  Walking  about  in  the 
lordly  grounds  seems  almost  like  being  in  Eng- 
land. In  the  early  days,  the  homesick  Britons 
banished  all  palms  as  reminders  of  the  land  of 
their  exile,  leaving  only  such  trees  as  looked  like 
home.  Nearer  at  hand,  were  the  Zoological  Gar- 
dens, down  beyond  the  Maidan  on  the  Alipore 
Road,  which  runs  out  to  Belvedere,  the  handsome 
mansion  of  the  Lieutenant-Governor  of  Bengal. 
Rich  in  its  extensive  collection  of  beasts,  birds, 
and  reptiles,  beautiful  with  lakes  and  flowers  and 
shrubbery,  the  Zoo  is  an  attractive  place  to  visit. 
But  it  was  to  none  of  these  that  the  outing 
party  went  one  bright  day  that  proved  big  with 
fate  for  them  all,  and  especially  for  Radha  and 
Frank.  It  had  been  several  weeks  since  they  had 
been  able  to  get  away  from  the  city.  They  had 
eagerly  looked  forward  to  the  holiday.  Elaborate 
preparations  had  been  made  the  day  before,  and 
they  were  all  up  bright  and  early  that  morning. 
Soon  they  were  on  the  road.  The  Cliffords, 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  121 

Raclha  and  Stanton,  were  in  the  family  carriage. 
A  thicka  ghari,  or  hired  carriage,  contained  the 
ayah,  to  look  after  the  child,  the  burwachi,  to 
cook  the  breakfast  and  tiffin,  the  khitmutghar,  to 
serve  the  food  for  those  two  important  meals,  and 
to  look  to  the  four  o'clock  tea  in  addition.  By 
such  aids  they  would  sustain  life  between  their 
choti  hazri,  or  early  breakfast  of  tea  and  toast, 
and  their  evening  dinner.  Upon  the  flat  roof  of 
the  cab  were  boxes  and  hampers  full  of  food  and 
plates  and  cooking  vessels  and  charcoal  stoves. 

Such  was  the  outfit  for  a  picnic.  It  sounds 
grossly  extravagant,  of  course.  But  the  third- 
class  cab,  with  two  horses  and  two  men,  would 
serve  them  for  a  whole  day  of  nine  hours  for  forty 
cents.  And  nurse,  cook,  and  waiter  were  happy 
to  receive  for  their  combined  services  the  gross 
sum  of  nine  or  ten  dollars  a  month. 

The  party,  thus  equipped  and  attended,  set 
out  for  a  day  at  the  Royal  Botanical  Gardens. 
Their  way  lay  down  Cornwallis  Street  to  Harri- 
son Road,  thence  to  the  great  floating  bridge,  and 
over  it  to  Howrah.  Then  turning  down  the  west 
bank  of  the  Hooghly,  a  four-mile  drive  along 
the  Sibpur  Road  took  them  to  the  entrance  of  the 
Garden. 

*  Royal '  is  the  proper  epithet  to  apply  to  that 
noble  garden  of  almost  three  hundred  acres. 


122  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Since  1786  it  has  been  growing  more  and  more 
superb.  All  that  love  of  botany,  and  skill  in  prac- 
tical horticulture  could  do,  with  abundance  of 
money  at  their  disposal,  has  been  done.  Ferns 
and  flowers,  grass  and  shrubbery,  palms  and  deo- 
dars, vie  with  one  another  in  luxuriance.  Broad 
avenues  are  lined  with  majestic  palms.  As  the 
carriage  rolls  along  the  smooth  drives,  the  visitor 
sees  beyond  the  trees  the  level  turf  dotted  with 
beds  of  rare  exotic  flowers.  The  three  spacious 
conservatories  are  almost  as  attractive  without  as 
within.  They  are  not  unsightly  structures  of 
glass.  The  genial  climate  permits  the  use  of  a 
framework  of  iron,  covered  with  wire  netting, 
which  is  hidden  by  delicate  vines.  These  temper 
the  sun  by  day,  and  retard  the  radiation  of  heat 
from  the  soil  by  night.  Within  are  grottos,  and 
fountains,  and  wondrous  ferns,  and  exquisite 
orchids,  all  in  bewildering  profusion. 

The  "  Botanies  "  also  boast  a  kingly  tree,  the 
monster  banyan  which  has  flourished  there  for 
more  than  a  hundred  years.  Its  wide-spreading 
branches,  that  else  would  break  from  their  own 
weight,  provide  their  supports  by  dropping  down 
aerial  roots,  which  bury  themselves  in  the  ground 
and  grow  to  stout  trunks.  The  noble  tree  has 
two  hundred  and  fifty  of  these,  varying  from  a 
few  inches  to  twelve  feet  in  circumference.  Be- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  123 

sides  these,  there  is  the  central  trunk  that  is  more 
than  forty-two  feet  in  girth.  Spreading  its  leafy 
boughs  abroad  on  every  side,  a  circle  drawn  about 
its  branches  will  measure  three  hundred  yards. 
It  is  not  surprising  that  the  Hindus  regard  the 
banyan  with  religious  veneration. 

Into  this  wonderland  the  happy  company  drove 
that  peerless  morning.  Leaving  the  servants  to 
look  after  the  effects  and  prepare  the  food,  the 
party  roamed  about,  drinking  in  the  fragrant  air 
and  the  enchanting  sights.  Radha  seemed  radi- 
ant with  delight  as  she  passed  swiftly  from  one 
gorgeous  group  of  flowers  to  another.  She  looked 
like  some  wild,  glad  bird,  and  communicated  her 
joy  to  those  who  watched  and  listened  to  her. 

'No  unexplored  region  was  the  Garden  to  the 
girl.  She  had  known  every  nook  and  corner  of 
it  for  years.  To  the  pleasure  of  seeing  again  her 
favorite  plants  and  flowers,  was  added  that  of 
discovering  all  the  new  beauties  that  had  been 
evolved  since  her  last  visit.  It  was  like  seeing, 
after  the  lapse  of  some  time,  a  dear  friend  whom 
the  passing  of  the  days  had  developed  into  riper 
beauty,  and  arrayed  in  a  new  costume  whose 
loveliness  was  enhanced  by  its  unfamiliar  nov- 
elty. 

Radha's  keen  appreciation  of  everything  beau- 
tiful made  her  seem  a  part  of  the  tropical  splen- 


124  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

dor  of  the  place.  Her  eyes  appeared  to  dilate 
and  her  soul  to  expand  until  her  charming  face 
was  transfigured  by  the  meeting  of  the  purity 
of  the  soul  within  and  the  perfection  of  color  and 
form  of  the  flowers  about  her.  A  voice  that  was 
ever  soft  and  low,  took  on  new  mellowness,  be- 
coming as  sweet  as  the  music  of  the  breeze  amid 
the  rustling  foliage. 

"  Isn't  she  perfectly  lovely?  "  whispered  Mrs. 
Clifford  to  her  husband  as  they  watched  her. 

"  Superb,"  he  replied.  "  I  am  sure  that  if  she 
ever  transmigrates  it  will  be  into  some  tropical 
plant." 

They  were  called  back  to  mundane  things  by 
the  voice  of  the  khitmutgar  announcing  break- 
fast. It  was  ten  o'clock,  fully  four  hours  having 
elapsed  since  they  ate  choti  hazri,  so  they  were 
ready  for  it.  On  the  grass,  beneath  the  shade  of 
a  wide-spreading  grove,  they  found  the  feast  pre- 
pared. A  large  durrie,  or  cotton  rug,  had  been 
laid,  with  the  table-cloth  placed  in  the  center  of 
it.  Upon  the  cloth  was  about  the  same  array  of 
china,  glass  and  silver  that  would  have  been  used 
at  home.  The  barwachi  had  his  improvised 
kitchen  not  far  away,  where  glowing  charcoal 
in  several  ungetis  cooked  the  food  and  kept  it 
warm. 

Breakfast  a  trifle  more  elaborate  might  have 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  125 

been  found  in  some  of  the  European  homes  that 
morning  in  Calcutta.  The  porridge,  for  instance, 
was  omitted  from  theirs.  But  there  were  soft 
boiled  eggs,  served  in  pretty  little  cups  and  eaten 
from  the  shell.  Then  followed  cold  roast  beef 
with  lettuce  salad.  After  that  came  the  usual 
curry  and  rice.  It  was  most  unusually  good, 
though,  being  of  tenderest  chicken  prepared  in 
the  milk  of  fresh  cocoanut,  served  with  sweet 
mangoe  chutny,  and  aided  by  out-of-door  appe- 
tites. Next  there  was  crisp,  brown  toast,  with 
the  best  of  orange  marmalade.  To  crown  it  all, 
was  the  fruit  secured  that  very  morning  by  the 
cook  as  they  had  passed  the  bazars — plantains, 
pomelos,  papita.  What  with  bread  and  butter, 
bottled  mineral  waters,  and  the  inevitable  tea  to 
supplement  all  at  every  stage,  no  one  went  away 
hungry. 

With  such  a  meal,  to  be  followed  at  two  o'clock 
by  a  tiffin  scarcely  less  elaborate,  and  with  the 
trouble  of  packing,  moving,  and  preparing  it  and 
all  the  necessary  glass,  china  and  silverware,  it 
is  no  wonder  that  the  servants  hardly  share  their 
masters'  delight  in  a  picnic.  The  whole  thing, 
with  its  trouble  and  expense,  strikes  the  native 
mind  as  contrary  to  common  sense.  Why  should 
grown  men  and  women,  utterly  incapable  of  ac- 
complishing the  Indian  feat  of  sitting  easily  and 


126  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

gracefully  on  the  ground,  leave  their  comfortable 
houses  for  so  extraordinary  a  performance? 
Reason  is  incapable  of  an  answer  to  the  question. 
Hence  the  native  calls  a  picnic  a  l  mad  dinner.' 
!  Hunger  being  satisfied,  they  took  their  durrie 
and  cushions  and  made  themselves  comfortable  in 
a  shady  nook.  Mr.  Clifford  read  to  them  a  story 
in  which  all  were  interested.  Thus  with  reading 
and  chatting,  accompanied  by  needlework  on  the 
part  of  the  ladies,  the  day  sped  on  to  tiffin.  The 
meal  ended,  Mrs.  Clifford  undertook  to  read  her 
husband  to  sleep.  Frank  and  Radha  wandered 
off  together  to  see  the  banyan  tree,  and  the  con- 
servatories. 

"  Do  you  know,"  said  the  girl,  "  that  great  tree 
became  cruel  to  the  mother  who  nursed  it,  and  un- 
gratefully destroyed  her." 

"  How  do  you  mean  ?  "  asked  Frank. 

"Why,  there  once  stood  here  a  wild  date- 
palm,"  replied  Radha,  "  and  the  seed  of  a  banyan 
tree  lodged  in  its  branches.  Soon  it  began  to 
grow,  and  draw  its  life  from  the  sap  of  the  palm 
tree.  Year  after  year  it  became  larger,  gradually 
dropping  its  long  roots  down  and  imbedding  them 
in  the  earth.  Little  by  little,  the  life  was  drawn 
from  the  tree  that  nursed  it;  more  and  more 
was  the  foster  mother  overshadowed.  At  last  the 
palm  died,  and  now  no  trace  of  it  remains." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  127 

"  Hard-hearted  son,"  said  Frank.  "  What  a 
pity  the  date  tree  mothered  it." 

"  But  think  how  grand  it  has  grown,"  she  made 
answer.  "  Was  it  not  glory  enough  for  the  poor 
palm  to  help  such  a  life?  What  better  is  there 
for  a  woman  to  do  than  gladly  to  give  her  life  for 
the  sons  or  husband  whom  she  loves?  " 

"Ay,  but  not  if  they  are  to  be  so  base  as  to 
destroy  her  for  their  own  gratification,"  he  moral- 
ized. 

"  No,"  she  said,  "  not  if  it  makes  them  base. 
But  if  that  evil  deed  makes  them  hate  all  wicked- 
ness afterwards,  when  they  see  what  they  have 
done,  then  it  is  best.  The  good  God  can  make 
even  evil  to  help  Him  in  developing  men.  Its  es- 
sence must  be  nothing,  or  it  must  in  reality  be 
a  good.  See,  this  grand  tree  is  beautiful  to  look 
upon ;  its  shade  is  grateful  to  men ;  it  is  a  sacred 
tree.  Ah,  I  am  sure  that  the  spirit  of  the  poor 
date-palm  is  glad  its  life  and  death  gave  to  the 
world  this  noble  life.  I  long  to  do  as  much  with 
my  life." 

This  bit  of  Oriental  mysticism  and  self-efface- 
ment puzzled  the  young  man.  With  his  ignor- 
ance of  the  deepest  meanings  of  life,  and  with  his 
Western  '  will  to  live,'  he  could  not  understand. 
Yet  there  came  a  day  in  which  his  chastened 


128  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

spirit  looked  back  through  the  mist  of  tears  and 
the  vista  of  the  years,  and  read  the  mystery. 

While  strolling  off  to  the  conservatories,  they 
came  upon  a  heap  of  large  calendula  blossoms, 
that  had  for  some  reason  been  rooted  out  and 
piled  up  for  removal. 

"  Look,"  cried  Radha,  "  how  I  wish  we  might 
gather  the  flowers  and  weave  them  into  gar- 
lands." 

Frank  called  to  a  babu  overseeing  some  work- 
men near  by,  and  learned  that  they  might  have 
the  blossoms.  Thereupon  they  gathered  all  they 
could  carry,  and  took  them  along  to  the  nearest 
conservatory.  They  soon  found  a  comfortable 
rustic  seat  among  the  palms  and  ferns,  and  sat 
down  to  weave  their  garlands.  Frank  did  the 
work  very  well  after  a  little  direction  from 
Radha.  She  chattered  away  like  a  happy  child 
as  she  bent  over  her  task.  There  were  so  many 
things  to  tell  of  the  various  ways  in  which  the 
Hindus  use  garlands  of  flowers  in  their  worship, 
and  at  all  social  festivities. 

"  In  the  ancient  laws  of  my  people,"  she  said, 
"  provision  is  made  for  marriage  by  exchange  of 
garlands.  Then,  as  in  your  country  now,  men 
and  maidens  could  freely  meet  together.  There 
were  other  rites  of  marriage  even  at  that  time 
where  the  fathers  arranged  everything  to  suit  the 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  129 

convenience  of  the  families,  but  this  one  seems  to 
me  most  beautiful  and  sacred." 

"  What  was  the  nature  of  the  ceremony? " 
Frank  enquired. 

"  The  law  says — '  The  union  of  a  lover  with  a 
loving  damsel  is  called  the  rite  of  the  Gand- 
harvas.'  And  after  speaking  of  all  the  other  rites, 
it  adds — '  Some  recommend  the  Gandharva  rite 
for  all  castes,  because  it  is  based  on  mutual  af- 
fection.' " 

"  I  didn't  suppose  there  was  anything  so  civil- 
ized in  your  old  laws,"  the  man  said  uncompli- 
mentarily. 

"  This  was  in  the  oldest  of  our  laws ;  much 
before  the  time  of  Manu,"  she  explained.  "  What 
made  me  recall  it  is  what  I  think  the  sweetest 
part  of  the  ceremony.  If  the  lovers  decided  to 
marry,  they  could  do  so  without  the  aid  of  priests 
or  others,  simply  by  repeating  some  muntras  and 
exchanging  garlands. 

"  That  was  romantic,  sure  enough,"  said  Frank. 
"  Here,  our  garlands  are  done — could  you  show 
me  how  the  rite  was  performed?  " 

The  girl  rather  shrank  away  from  him,  and 
her  face  flushed.  He  noticed  only  her  hesitation. 

"  Come,"  he  urged,  "  let  us  perform  the  cere- 
mony." 

"  If  you  really  wish  it,  I  will,"  she  said  slowly. 


130  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  I  certainly  do  wish  it,  very  much,"  he  in- 
sisted. 

Then  they  stood  in  their  bower  of  green,  facing 
each  other.  About  their  feet  were  the  yellow 
blossoms  that  had  fallen  while  they  had  worked. 
•Kadha  taught  him  the  Sanskrit  muntra  that  he 
was  to  repeat.  They  hung  their  garlands  about 
each  other's  necks.  Then  they  clasped  hands  and 
each  said  the  appointed  verse. 

"  That  is  all,"  said  the  girl. 

"  So,  according  to  the  most  sacred  laws  of  the 
ancient  Aryas,  we  have  been  made  one?."  he 
asked  playfully. 

"  Yes,"  she  answered. 

Intent  only  upon  the  ceremony,  and  what  he 
considered  its  mock  performance,  he  had  noticed 
neither  the  girl's  embarrassment,  nor  the  strange 
light  that  shone  in  her  eyes. 

"  It  is  a  very  pretty  ceremony,"  said  Stanton. 

"  Yes,"  replied  Kadha,  "  and  very  sweet  and 
sacred  to  me." 

They  resumed  their  seat  and  remained  silent 
for  a  while.  High  up  in  a  grotto  before  them  a 
minature  fountain  was  tossing  its  spray  into  the 
perfumed  air.  From  its  basin  a  tiny  stream  over- 
flowed and  fell  in  a  musical  cascade  down  over 
the  mossy  stones.  In  the  little  pool  at  the  base 
of  the  grotto  many  gold  fishes  were  swimming 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  131 

gracefully  about.  Upon  the  vine-clad  roof  of  the 
bower  a  song  bird  was  pouring  forth  its  joyous 
notes  into  the  balmy  air. 

"  Will  you  not  tell  me  an  Indian  love  story?  " 
Stanton  asked  at  last.  "  This  is  surely  the  time 
and  place  for  it." 

Thus  roused  from  her  dreamy  revery,  Radha 
reflected  for  a  few  moments  and  then  began  her 
story. 

"  In  the  long  ago  there  lived  in  this  land  a  king 
and  his  two  childless  wives.  Great  was  their 
sorrow  that  no  son  gladdened  their  home.  Most 
earnestly  did  each  wife  desire  to  be  the  happy 
mother  of  a  prince.  While  matters  stood  thus 
with  them,  there  chanced  to  come  to  the  palace 
one  day  a  most  holy  mendicant.  Through  her 
gentle  kindness  to  the  holy  man,  the  younger 
queen  won  his  favor.  When  leaving  the  palace, 
he  called  her  aside  and  told  her  that  within  the 
year  the  desire  of  her  heart  should  be  realized  in 
the  birth  of  a  son. 

"  *  But,'  said  the  Yogi,  '  the  secret  source  of  his 
life  will  be  hidden  in  a  great  fish  that  swims  in 
the  tank  before  your  home.  In  the  heart  of  that 
fish  in  an  ivory  box ;  within  that  box  is  a  necklace 
of  pearls,  and  that  necklace  is  the  life  of  your 
son.' 

"  Even  as  the  holy  man  had  promised,  there 


132  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

came  a  happy  day  when  the  king's  heart  was 
made  glad  by  the  birth  of  a  son.  Great  was  the 
rejoicing  throughout  the  palace  and  in  all  the 
kingdom.  But  the  soul  of  the  elder  queen  was 
filled  with  bitterest  envy.  She  pined  neglected, 
whilst  the  king  had  delight  in  the  mother  of  his 
h'eir  alone.  So  she  hated  him;  and  as  he  grew, 
she  hated  him  the  more. 

"  Most  heartily  did  the  elder  queen  long  for  the 
destruction  of  the  child.  At  last,  when  he  was 
twelve  years  old,  to  her  great  delight,  she  learned 
the  secret  of  his  life.  Pretending  to  be  very  ill, 
the  jealous  woman  bribed  the  court  physician  to 
tell  the  king  her  life  could  be  saved  only  by  an 
application  prepared  from  the  heart  of  the  great 
fish  in  the  palace  lake.  Then  the  king  ordered 
that  the  fish  be  captured. 

When  the  fish  was  taken  in  the  net,  the  prince 
sickened;  when  it  was  brought  to  land,  he 
swooned;  when  it  died,  he  gasped  out  his  life. 
The  fish  was  cut  open  and  its  heart  taken  to  the 
wicked  woman.  In  high  glee  she  got  possession 
of  the  ivory  box  with  its  necklace  of  pearls.  The 
king,  however,  was  distraught.  He  would  not 
have  the  body  of  his  son  burned,  but  laid  him  in 
a  rustic  house  in  a  beautiful  garden  in  the  out- 
skirts of  the  royal  city.  There  he  ordered  his 
servants  to  place  food  by  the  side  of  the  prince 
every  day,  just  as  though  he  needed  it. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  133 

"  After  a  time  the  grief  of  the  king  was  some- 
what assuaged.  But  the  mother  of  the  boy  re- 
mained plunged  in  the  deepest  sorrow.  Therefore 
the  king  soon  began  to  pass  his  nights  in  company 
with  the  elder  queen.  Every  day  she  wore  the 
necklace  that  held  magic  power  over  the  life  of 
the  prince.  But  when  the  king  came  to  her  at 
night,  she  laid  aside  the  ornament.  So,  every  day 
the  young  prince  lay  cold  in  death ;  but  at  night 
'He  awoke  to  life,  refreshed  himself  with  the  food 
that  he  found,  and  walked  about  the  garden,  en- 
joying its  fragrance. 

"  A  devoted  friend  whose  love  often  led  him  to 
visit  the  house  where  the  prince  lay,  noticed  that 
death  left  no  mark  upon  the  fair  body.  Setting 
himself  to  watch,  he  saw  his  friend  come  to  life. 
From  him  he  learned  that  power  over  the  prince's 
life  resided  in  the  necklace  in  the  hands  of  the 
treacherous  queen.  Together  they  consulted  how 
to  gain  possession  of  the  magic  jewel  and  break 
the  spell  that  held  the  youth  in  thrall. 

"  It  had  chanced  some  years  before  that  a 
lovely  girl  had  been  born  in  a  distant  part  of 
the  kingdom.  Of  her  it  had  been  prophesied  that 
she  would  marry  a  dead  groom.  When  the  child 
approached  the  age  of  nubility,  the  distressed 
mother  fled  with  her  to  try  to  save  her  from  so 
sad  a  fate.  In  their  flight,  they  came  to  a  beauti- 


134  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

ful  garden.  There  the  woman  left  the  girl  in  the 
shade  of  the  trees  whilst  she  went  into  the  city 
to  buy  food.  Left  to  herself,  the  girl  wandered 
through  the  garden  until  she  came  upon  a  rustic 
house.  Seeing  the  door  open,  she  entered  in. 
Just  after  she  crossed  the  threshold  a  strong 
wind  blew  shut  the  door,  and  she  could  by  no 
means  open  it.  When  the  mother  returned  and 
found  not  her  daughter,  she  went  away  sorrow- 
fully seeking  her. 

"  The  girl  soon  discovered  that  the  house  con- 
tained a  handsome  lad,  lying  wrapped  in  appar- 
ent sleep.  Thereupon  she  withdrew  again  to  the 
door,  lest  she  should  arouse  him  and  incur  his 
displeasure.  In  the  evening  the  prince  suddenly 
sat  up  and  looked  about  him.  Finding  the  girl 
there,  he  heard  with  interest  the  story  of  her  life. 
Having  learned  of  the  prophecy  concerning  her 
nuptials,  he  was  greatly  delighted. 

"  '  You  must  straightway  take  me  as  your 
husband,'  he  declared,  '  In  good  time  you  will 
learn  that  I  am  the  one  for  whom  you  are  des- 
tined.' 

"  Then  and  there,  in  accordance  with  the  an- 
cient laws  of  their  country,  they  became  bride  and 
groom  by  an  exchange  of  garlands.  Later,  came 
the  prince's  friend,  and  they  all  rejoiced  and 
feasted  together.  Finally,  he  left  them,  and  after 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  135 

many  hours  they  fell  into  happy  slumber.  When 
the  bride  awoke  she  was  crazed  to  find  her  hus- 
band cold  and  still.  She  shook  him,  and  with 
kisses  and  embraces  sought  to  awake  him,  but 
all  in  vain.  So  all  day  long  she  wandered  about 
the  house  and  garden  as  one  mad. 

"  At  night  the  prince  again  revived.  He  com- 
forted his  wife  and  explained  to  her  the  sad  mys- 
tery of  his  life.  In  such  wise  years  passed  while 
they  were  planning  deliverance.  Two  beautiful 
children,  a  boy  and  a  girl,  were  born  in  that  time. 
At  length,  with  plans  all  formed,  the  princess, 
disguised  as  a  female  barber,  went  to  the  palace 
with  her  children.  She  applied  at  the  door  for 
work — to  dress  the  hair,  pare  the  nails,  remove 
the  thickened  skin  from  the  soles  of  the  feet,  or 
to  stain  the  edges  of  the  hands  and  feet  of  the 
ladies  of  the  palace.  The  would-be  barber  saw 
her  mother-in-law,  who  yet  kept  up  her  mourning, 
and  needed  no  barber;  but  the  other  queen  em- 
ployed her. 

"  Whilst  the  mother  worked,  her  little  boy  be- 
gan to  tease  the  wicked  woman  for  the  necklace 
that  she  wore.  At  last,  through  much  pretty 
coaxing  and  pouting,  he  got  it.  The  queen  being 
interested  in  her  toilet,  the  little  boy  ran  un- 
noticed away.  Great  was  the  pretended  grief  of 
the  barber  when  it  was  noticed  what  her  child 


136  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

had  done.  But  the  queen,  being  sure  that  her1, 
rival's  son  must  long  since  have  died,  did  not 
much  care.  So  the  barber  went  away  with  the 
promise  that  the  necklace  should  be  returned  to 
the  palace. 

"  There  was  great  joy  that  night  at  the  house 
in  the  garden.  The  prince  now  had  possession 
of  the  magic  power  over  his  life,  and  could  at 
last  return  to  his  home.  Next  morning,  the 
friend  brought  an  elephant  for  the  prince,  ponies 
for  the  children,  and  a  palanquin  for  the  prin- 
cess. Thus  they  all  went  into  the  presence  of  the 
king.  With  wild  rejoicing  he  and  the  younger 
queen  received  them.  When  their  strange  story 
had  been  heard,  the  old  queen  fell  a  victim  to  the 
king's  rage.  He  caused  to  be  dug  a  deep  pit,  into 
which  he  put  her.  Then  he  had  it  filled  with 
thorns  and  the  earth  heaped  upon  her.  As  for 
the  king  and  the  good  queen,  they  lived  in  happi- 
ness many  years,  whilst  the  prince  and  princess 
had  many  children  and  grandchildren  to  bless 
them." 

"  Thank  you,"  said  Frank,  as  the  tale  ended. 
"  You  must  tell  me  more  stories  some  day.  It 
is  now  time  to  join  the  others  at  tea,  and  then 
we'll  be  starting  home.  Let  us  go." 

11  What  is  the  meaning  of  those  festal  gar- 
lands? "  Mrs.  Clifford  called  to  them  as  the 
young  people  approached. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  137 

"  Oh,"  said  Stanton,  "  there  has  been  an  im- 
portant ceremony  according  to  the  most  sacred 
laws  of  the  ancients.  Radha  and  I  have  just  been 
married  by  exchange  of  garlands.  Congratula- 
tions are  in  order." 

Mrs.  Clifford  was  not  very  observant  in  such 
matters,  but  she  could  see  that  the  girl  was  em- 
barrassed, while  Frank  evidently  considered 
whatever  had  happened  as  mere  sport. 

"  I  wish  you'd  go  see  whether  the  khit  is  getting 
tea  ready,"  she  said  to  them  to  change  the  sub- 
ject 

"  Richard,"  said  she,  addressing  her  husband 
when  they  were  gone,  "  I  wonder  whether  it  is 
safe  for  Radha  to  be  with  Mr.  Stanton  so  much. 
He  seems  to  regard  her  merely  as  a  child,  but 
I  fear  she  may  come  to  love  him." 

"  I  am  sure  I  don't  know,"  he  responded,  "  I 
must  leave  such  matters  to  you.  Only  be  careful 
that  no  harm  befalls  the  little  girl." 

When  tea  was  over  they  started  for  home,  all 
declaring  that  it  had  been  a  most  delightful  day. 

After  dinner  that  night  the  Cliffords  went 
down  town  to  a  lecture  at  the  Dalhousie  Insti- 
tute. Frank  and  Radha  were  in  the  library 
alone.  He  was  trying  to  study,  but  with  poor 
success.  The  wine  of  the  day's  pleasure  was  in 
his  blood.  At  last  he  threw  his  books  aside  and 
turned  to  his  companion. 


138  FIRES  OF  DESIRE. 

"  Radha,"  he  said.  "  I  have  never  seen  you  in 
your  native  costume  and  jewels — your  Indian 
'  full  dress.'  Won't  you  dress  for  me  to-night, 
just  to  finish  up  this  good  day." 

"  I  will  if  you  wish  it,"  she  replied,  and  went 
at  once  to  do  so.  She  passed  from  the  library  to 
the  music  room  beyond,  and  thence  to  her  own 
apartment. 

Left  alone,  the  young  man  was  soon  driven  to 
ask  himself  why  he  had  made  the  request  of  the 
girl.  He  had  seen  no  ladies  in  purely  native  cos- 
tume, but  he  knew  it  differed  from  that  of  the 
poorer  women  on  the  streets  only  in  its  richness. 
Was  it  possible  that  he,  Frank  Stanton,  minister 
and  missionary,  wanted  Radha  to  appear  before 
him  in  that  dress  simply  that  he  might  behold  the 
charms  of  the  beautiful  form  which  he  knew 
would  thus  be  revealed?  Facing  the  question 
thus,  his  soul  took  fright.  He  sought  to  prove  to 
himself  that  he  was  moved  only  by  a  desire  such 
as  impelled  him  to  inquire  into  all  the  customs 
of  the  land.  But  while  he  so  reasoned,  he  felt 
surging  up  within  him,  passions  whose  power  he 
had  never  before  experienced. 

The  man  fell  upon  his  knees  and  cried  unto  his 
God  for  help.  It  was  no  doubt  near,  but  he  did 
not  reach  it.  Drifting  with  the  current  is  pleas- 
ant. Help  is  far  away,  and  it  is  difficult  to  be 


•May  I  come?  asked  the  voice." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  139 

clear-headed  enough  to  do  the  wisest  thing  when 
the  noise  of  the  cataract  is  in  one's  ears,  and  the 
cloud  of  rainbow-tinted  spray  rising  before  one's 
eyes  is  the  flaunting  of  death's  banner. 

"  Do  not  let  her  come  to  you,"  seemed  the  clear 
response  to  the  cry  for  help.  But  immediately  a 
low  voice  came  to  him  from  beyond  the  curtained 
door  of  the  music  room. 

"  May  I  come?  "  asked  the  voice. 

"  Come,"  he  cried  with  a  sternness  born  of  the 
fierce  conflict  raging  within  him. 

Radha  had  entered  the  room  even  while  she 
called  to  him.  There  was  that  in  the  sound  of 
his  voice  which  made  her  pause.  Then  she  saw 
Stanton  on  his  knees,  though  he  had  straightened 
up  to  look  at  her.  The  vision  he  saw  caused  his 
good  genius  to  flee.  From  his  sight  there  faded 
away  the  faces  of  his  Divine  Master,  his  Mother, 
and  Mabel.  His  soul  had  taken  fright  too  late. 

In  the  shaded  light  of  the  reading  lamp  upon 
the  table  by  him  he  was  in  comparative  shadow. 
Where  the  girl  stood  at  the  other  end  of  the  long 
room,  a  blaze  of  light  shone  behind  her  and  upon 
her.  She  was  clad  in  a  sari,  the  single,  simple 
garment  of  the  women  of  India.  In  the  prevail- 
ing fashion  of  the  zenanas,  the  material  was  of 
the  thinnest  gauze.  In  color,  it  was  palest  green, 
with  a  wonderful,  silvery  sheen  in  the  light,  and 


HO  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

bordered  all  around  with  gold.  Wound  in  the 
most  graceful  folds  about  the  girl's  body,  and  even 
over  her  head,  it  both  concealed  and  revealed  the 
perfect  lines  and  curves  of  her  beautiful  body. 
Her  little  feet,  uncramped  by  any  long  familiarity 
with  European  shoes,  were  bare.  Upon  her 
shapely  ankles  were  tinkling  anklets.  About  her 
wrists  were  jeweled  bracelets,  and  on  her  upper 
arms,  heavy  golden  armlets.  Encircling  her 
throat  was  a  necklace  of  pearls,  whilst  around 
her  neck  and  low  upon  her  breast,  was  a  chain 
of  gold  with  wide  and  massy  links.  Dark  as  mid- 
night, her  hair  hung  loose  and  reached  far  below 
her  waist;  across  her  brow  a  diamond  chaplet 
shone. 

The  young  man  thrust  out  one  foot  before  him 
and  held  out  his  arms,  remaining  upon  one  knee. 
He  had  passed  from  supplication  to  adoration. 
When  he  called  her  to  him,  the  girl  raised  her 
head  and  smiled.  Then  the  end  of  her  sari  that 
had  been  drawn  over  her  head  fell  back,  revealing 
more  fully  her  exquisite  neck  and  arms  and 
bosom.  She  stretched  out  both  her  hands  to  meet 
the  inviting  arms  of  the  man,  and  went  to  him 
with  a  childlike  grace.  He  drew  her  down  upon 
his  knee. 

Radha  manifested  no  self-consciousness.  Why 
should  she?  The  costume  was  not  strange  to  her. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  141 

It  was  such  as  all  her  fellow-countrywomen  daily 
wore  in  their  homes,  and  upon  the  street,  too, 
if  they  went  there.  Such  had  always  been  her 
house  dress  in  the  old  days  with  her  father.  The 
jewels  and  the  sari  had  been  her  mother's,  long 
ago.  As  for  the  man  to  whom  she  went — he  had 
come  to  be  the  lord  of  her  life.  With  all  the  pas- 
sion of  her  tropical  nature,  she  loved  him.  More- 
over had  they  not  that  very  day  plighted  their 
troth  in  the  sacred  language  of  her  ancient 
people,  and  been  made  one  by  the  power  of  the 
venerated  laws  of  the  Aryas?  He  had  declared 
that  he  wanted  the  ceremony  performed,  and  had 
told  their  friends  what  had  happened  among  the 
ferns. 

If  that  ceremony  had  never  taken  place,  it  is 
doubtful  whether  she  would  have  denied  Stanton 
any  wish.  She  had  descended  from  a  people  who 
had  believed  for  untold  centuries  that  it  is  the 
glory  of  women  to  yield  to  men.  All  the  women  of 
the  country  did  the  will  of  fathers  and  husbands. 
With  ceremonies  not  so  meaningful  as  Radha  had 
taken  part  in  that  day,  all  the  girls  she  had 
known  in  childhood  had  long  since  yielded  them- 
selves to  men  chosen  by  their  fathers,  and  unseen 
by  themselves  before  the  wedding  night.  The  girl 
had  followed  the  promptings  of  her  heart,  and 
the  laws  that  her  father  had  so  often  declared 


142  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

superior  to  any  modern  Hindu  codes.  To  her 
idol  she  would  give  herself  as  gladly,  and  with  as 
little  thought  as  would  the  flower  turn  its  face 
to  the  morning  sun.  What  were  the  half  under- 
stood restrictions  of  the  new  life  she  had  recently 
entered,  when  compared  with  the  potent  powers 
of  heredity,  and  environment,  and  early  habits, 
and  all-controlling  desire? 

"  You  are  most  beautiful,"  murmured  the 
young  man.  Then  he  quoted  a  line  from  the  Gita 
Govinda  that  came  to  his  mind — " '  Beautiful 
Radha,  jasmine-bosomed  Radha.' ' 

He  arose  with  her  in  his  arms  and  lightly  car- 
ried her  to  a  divan.  The  room  was  full  of  melody, 
for,  with  the  born  artist's  appreciation  of  detail, 
the  girl  had  started  a  music  box  to  playing  as 
she  came  through  the  outer  room.  One  of  Men- 
delssohn's '  Songs  without  Words '  was  being 
rendered  by  the  superb  instrument.  The  music 
was  felt  rather  than  heard. 

"  I  can  now  appreciate  the  language  in  which 
your  poets  sing  the  charms  of  their  ladies,"  said 
Stanton,  as  he  sat  beside  the  girl  who  reclined 
among  the  cushions  of  the  divan.  He  spoke  to 
her  in  the  language  of  a  tropical  imagination. 
Nor  seemed  the  words  strange  to  the  child  of 
India.  It  thrilled  her  soul  through  and  through 
to  hear  such  expressions  from  her  beloved, 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE.  143 

"  Thy  brows  are  as  a  huntsman's  bended  bow. 
Soft  as  a  wounded  gazelle's  though  thine  eyes  be, 
yet  they  smite  the  heart  as  do  a  huntsman's  pierc- 
ing darts.  Like  a  lotus  flower  is  thy  face;  red  as 
the  bima  berry  are  thy  lips,  through  whose  parted 
curves  show  teeth  of  white  jasmine.  Thy  skin  is 
soft  as  petals  of  most  delicate  flowers." 

Then  he  fell  to  examining  her  jewels.  The  sari 
was  pushed  aside  that  he  might  the  better  see  the 
curiously  wrought  chain  lying  against  the  beauti- 
ful outward  curve  of  her  bosom. 

"  What  makes  the  anklets  tinkle,  and  however 
are  they  got  on?  " 

Yes,  he  could  see  while  she  explained,  and  he 
noticed  that  the  shapely  foot  was  scarcely  so  long 
as  his  hand. 

"  But  the  sari — how  can  that  long  piece  of 
thin  cloth  possibly  be  kept  in  place,  without  but- 
ton, hook,  clasp  or  pin?  "  So  she  showed  him 
how  it  must  be  drawn  tightly  about  the  con- 
tracted waist,  and  folded  back  and  forth  upon  it- 
self in  front,  and  neatly  tucked  where  it  is  held 
securely  in  place  when  the  waist  is  permitted  to 
relax  again.  And  the  long  end,  left  from  fashion- 
ing the  lower  garment,  is  wound  about  the  should- 
ers and  thrown  over  the  head. 

Thus  the  moments  slipped  away.  The  music 
played  on.  They  talked  in  subdued  tones,  while 


144  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

he  sat  bending  over  her  where  she  lay.  No  pic- 
ture could  have  been  more  charming  and  sacred, 
had  it  meant  all  to  the  man  that  it  did  to  the 
maid. 

The  whispered  words  of  admiration,  the  toying 
with  the  jewels,  the  touch  whose  thrill  was  more 
subtle  than  electricity — was  it  the  playing  of  a 
cat  with  a  mouse  soon  to  be  destroyed?  Or  was 
it  the  struggle  of  a  drowning  man  catching  at 
every  straw  to  delay  his  sinking?  It  could  matter 
but  little  in  the  end. 

That  night  two  frail  human  barques  were  borne 
by  the  tide  of  passion  out  upon  the  sea  of  folly. 
The  helmsman  who  sat  at  the  rudder  of  the  one 
was  Love,  and  he  was  blind  withal.  The  pilot  to 
guide  the  other  was  Lust,  and  he,  alas,  was  drunk 
with  the  wine  of  desire.  And  the  treacherous 
rocks  which  that  sea  concealed  were  many  and 
cruel,  so  cruel. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  145 


CHAPTER  VIII 

THE    DARKNESS    DEEPENS 

THE  plague  had  reached  Calcutta.  When  it 
began  its  ravages  in  Bombay,  and  then  spread  to 
other  places,  the  leading  priests  of  the  metropolis 
had  confidently  declared  that  it  would  not  come 
there.  Did  not  the  sacred  current  of  the  Ganges 
flow  past  the  city?  Had  not  the  unbelieving 
white  man  learned  at  Benares,  even  by  means  of 
his  infidel  science,  that  Mother  Gunga  destroys 
the  germs  of  disease  that  are  said  to  pollute  her 
holy  waters?  The  plague  could  not  work  in  Cal- 
cutta. 

When  the  passing  months  did  not  bring  the 
scourge,  notwithstanding  all  the  filth  of  the  city, 
and  its  intercourse  with  infected  districts,  the 
words  of  the  priests  seemed  confirmed.  The 
great  river  claimed  a  new  reverence  from  the 
faithful.  Then  learned  white  men  felt  called 
upon  to  give  a  rational  explanation  of  the  city's 
exemption.  They  concluded  that  an  alluvial  soil, 
such  as  was  found  along  the  river's  course,  was 


146  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

not  favorable  to  the  growth  of  bubonic  plague. 
Pious  Hindus  laughed  quietly  over  such  theories. 
Well  did  they  know  that  it  was  Mother  Gunga's 
blessing  upon  her  loving  children. 

At  length,  there  came  a  day  when  it  was  whis- 
pered about  that  in  Bura  Bazar  and  other  places, 
dead  rats  were  being  found  in  great  numbers. 
There  might  be  a  meaning  to  that.  So  had  it  hap- 
pened in  Bombay  before  people  began  to  die  in 
great  numbers  too.  A  few  days  later,  the  native 
population  was  panic-stricken  and  in  flight.  The 
plague  had  begun  its  swift  and  deadly  work. 

Business  was  paralyzed.  There  were  no  carts 
or  carriages  upon  the  streets.  The  roads  from 
town  were  blocked  with  fugitives,  carrying  their 
poor  possessions  with  them,  and  fleeing  for  life. 
In  every  direction,  they  spread  themselves  out 
over  the  country,  bearing  with  them  the  germs 
of  the  dread  disease;  leaving  the  dying  and 
the  dead  lying  along  the  road.  In  the  city, 
hundreds  of  wretched  creatures  were  perishing. 
The  dead  were  carried  forth  in  processions;  the 
mourners  went  about  the  streets.  The  faith  of 
the  faithful  had  not  saved  them,  nor  had  the 
science  of  the  scientist  averted  destruction. 

It  was  not  many  days,  however,  until  the  fugi- 
tives began  to  return.  Things  were  rather  worse 
than  better  in  the  city,  but  there  was  no  way  for 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  147 

the  multitudes  to  sustain  themselves  elsewhere. 
They  would  settle  down  in  dumb  misery  to  take 
this  new  ill  as  a  matter  of  course.  So  their  kins- 
men had  done  in  Bombay.  The  story  would  re- 
peat itself  in  many  other  places  in  the  course  of 
the  dark  years.  Always  there  would  be  the  mad 
panic  at  the  first  coming  of  the  plague.  Then 
there  would  be  resignation  to  this  new  stroke  of 
fate  that  merely  added  another  to  the  long  list 
of  deadly  foes — poisonous  reptiles,  wild  beasts, 
famine,  smallpox,  cholera,  fevers!  Mysterious 
beings  are  the  mighty  gods ;  there  is  nothing  bet- 
ter for  a  man  to  do  than  to  submit  himself  to  the 
decrees  of  fate  all  the  days  of  his  life  of  vanity. 

In  the  Mukerji  mansion  there  had  been  some 
consternation  wrought  by  the  advent  of  the 
plague.  In  the  first  place,  the  servants  had  all 
deserted.  India  is  far  from  being  exempt  from 
the  inconveniences  of  the  servant  problem.  After 
they  returned  from  the  stampede,  or  were  re- 
placed by  others,  another  cloud  arose.  The  ayah 
who  cared  for  little  Bernice  Clifford  had  gone  to 
her  home,  as  usual,  one  night,  and  had  not  re- 
turned the  next  morning.  Mrs.  Clifford  heard  the 
second  day  that  the  woman  was  ill.  The  follow- 
ing morning  she  was  asking  another  servant  how 
the  ayah  was  getting  along,  when  she  was  inter- 
rupted by  a  sudden  cry  from  the  man. 


148  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  Ah,  Mem  Sahib,  may  the  gods  be  merciful, 
but  there  they  are  carrying  her  forth  to  the  burn- 
ing now ! " 

The  ayah  had  died  of  plague  that  morning,  just 
three  days  after  she  had  been  caring  for  Mrs.  Clif- 
ford's little  girl.  It  was  not  strange  that  the 
mother  should  take  fright.  A  family  council  de- 
cided that  mother  and  child  should  leave  the  city 
for  a  time.  So  they  went  to  visit  some  American 
friends  at  a  pleasant  little  station  in  Orissa. 

Frank  Stanton  had  left  Calcutta  too.  He  was 
preparing  for  his  examination  in  Bengali.  There 
had  been  some  talk  about  his  getting  away  into 
the  country  where  he  would  hear  only  the  verna- 
cular, and  so  perfect  himself  more  fully  in  the 
language.  After  that  fateful  day  in  the  Botanical 
Garden,  he  had  manifested  great  anxiety  to  get 
away.  Kichard  Clifford  could  ill  spare  him.  But 
the  language  study  was  regarded  as  of  chief  im- 
portance just  then.  Besides,  the  young  man  had 
seemed  troubled  and  almost  sick  of  late.  When 
an  opportunity  came  for  him  to  go  to  an  out  of 
the  way  station  with  a  veteran  missionary,  it 
was  thought  best  for  him  to  avail  of  it. 

The  old,  happy  days  of  his  life  in  Calcutta  were 
gone  forever.  He  carried  the  memory  and  burden 
of  a  great  sin  in  his  heart.  It  was  harder  to  bear 
because  it  stood  alone  in  his  history.  No  vestal 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  149 

virgin  had  ever  been  purer  in  thought  and  deed 
than  his  life  had  been.  He  was  in  a  maze  of  moral 
confusion,  and  knew  not  how  to  adjust  himself 
to  the  new  conditions  of  his  existence.  Kadha 
seemed  unchanged,  but  he  found  it  impossible  to 
meet  her  as  formerly.  He  felt  that  he  simply 
must  get  away  and  think. 

At  the  parting,  a  new  vision  of  the  girl's  soul 
had  been  revealed  to  him.  She  had  appeared 
vaguely  conscious,  for  some  days,  that  all  was 
not  well  with  the  man  she  loved.  But  he  might 
be  bothered  by  the  approaching  examination,  or 
possibly  he  was  not  well.  She  thought  he  must  be 
overworked,  too,  he  seemed  so  busy,  and  to  have 
far  less  time  to  be  with  her  than  formerly.  They 
were  alone  when  he  was  leaving  the  house.  He 
was  going  from  Sealdah  station  by  the  night  train 
on  the  East  Bengal  Railway.  Her  face  was 
drawn  with  the  pain  of  parting,  and  her  eyes 
were  misty  with  unshed  tears.  She  crept  close 
to  his  side,  and  he  did  not  try  to  put  her  away. 

"  You  will  not  forget  the  day  in  the  Garden, 
and  the  Gandharva  rite,  and  the  garlands,"  she 
said  wistfully,  half  questioningly. 

"  No,"  he  had  replied.  God  in  heaven !  What 
would  he  not  give  to  be  able  to  forget  that  day? 
No,  he  would  not  forget  it,  there  was  no  risk 
in  such  a  promise. 


150  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Then  he  stooped  and  kissed  the  upturned  lips. 
That  was  not  to  gratify  himself,  but  to  please  her. 
The  lingering  love-light  in  her  eyes  made  him 
somehow  think  of  the  last  caressing  notes  of  some 
plaintive  melody  by  the  hands  of  a  master  mu- 
sician. Or  was  it  the  upreaching  of  a  quivering 
flower  towards  the  sun,  that  he  seemed  to  behold? 
Whatever  it  was,  the  transfigured  face  in  its  halo 
of  love  smote  through  the  man's  soul  until  he 
groaned  aloud  as  he  left  the  house.  During  all 
the  after  years  of  his  life,  the  thought  of  Radha 
always  brought  before  him  the  parting  vision  of 
that  night. 

With  the  passing  of  the  weeks  of  the  cool  sea- 
son, the  plague  grew  worse.  It  was  alarmingly 
prevalent  when  Mrs.  Clifford's  sister,  Dr.  Esther 
Emmett,  came  to  the  city  for  medical  and  other 
supplies  for  her  station.  She  found  Kadha  lonely 
and  depressed. 

"  My  dear,"  said  Miss  Emmett,  you  must  go 
home  with  me.  Calcutta  never  was  fit  for  a  hu- 
man being  to  live  in,  and  it's  worse  than  ever  now. 
You  have  no  business  here  alone  in  this  great 
house,  anyway." 

Dr.  Esther  was  a  young  woman  of  decided  opin- 
ions and  positive  statements.  Like  most  up- 
country  people,  she  had  very  strong  views  about 
the  unfitness  of  Calcutta  for  mortal  habitation. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  151 

"  Why,  child,"  she  cried  to  the  protesting 
Radha,  "  this  city  is  one  mass  of  germs.  I  was 
reading  in  a  medical  journal  just  the  other  day 
of  a  German  scientist  who  has  discovered  there 
are  twelve  million  bacteria  on  the  skins  of  half  a 
pound  of  cherries.  Now  just  try  to  think  how 
many  germs  that  is,  and  then  remember  it's  on 
cherries  in  Germany,  and  not  on  Hindus  in 
India.  What,  then,  must  be  the  appalling  num- 
ber of  microbes  in  Calcutta,  carried  about  on  the 
skin  of  every  filthy  rascal  here !  Ugh ! " 

Whether  frightened  by  the  vision  of  the  in- 
numerable company  of  animalculi  thus  conjured 
up,  or  induced  by  other  reasons,  Radha  yielded 
to  her  friend's  entreaties.  It  would  be  a  pleasant 
change,  and  would  help  while  away  the  time  till 
Frank's  return. 

When  Esther  Emmett  took  her  place  in  the 
ladies'  compartment  of  a  Bengal  and  Nagpur 
Railway  carriage,  bound  for  her  home  at  Mungal- 
pore,  in  the  Central  Provinces,  the  pretty  Bengali 
girl  was  with  her.  Radha  could  not  have  told 
why,  but  she  felt  that  this  journey  of  eight  hun- 
dred miles  was  to  carry  her  a  long  way  from  all 
that  she  loved  most.  She  had  gone  with  many 
flowers  to  her  father's  grave,  and  spent  the  whole 
morning  there.  Then  she  lingered  lovingly  about 
every  spot  in  the  house  and  garden  that  was 


152  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

fraught  with  especially  tender  memories  of  by- 
gone days.  It  was  a  tearful  little  face  that  hid 
itself  behind  her  sari  as  the  long  train  pulled  out 
of  Howrah  station  and  bore  Radha  away  from 
Calcutta. 

Mungalpore  was  a  place  of  about  ten  thousand 
inhabitants.  For  its  size,  it  did  almost  as  well  in 
the  way  of  dirt  as  the  metropolis.  But  the  pleas- 
ant mission  bungalows  stood  quite  apart  from 
the  town  in  their  own  broad  compounds.  Dr. 
Emmett's  quarters  were  at  some  distance  from 
the  others,  near  her  hospital.  However,  she  al- 
ways went  over  to  the  Ladies'  Bungalow  for  her 
meals.  The  place  was  quiet,  and  the  air  quite  dif- 
ferent from  that  of  the  capital.  The  various 
workers  gave  Radha  a  cordial  welcome.  Change 
of  scene  and  bright  companions  of  her  own  sex, 
visibly  improved  the  girl.  The  days  passed  pleas- 
antly, with  nothing  to  mar  their  peace. 

It  was  dinner-time  at  the  Ladies'  Bungalow  one 
evening  a  few  weeks  later.  Darkness  had  not  yet 
fallen,  for  the  good  ladies  lived  rather  simply,  and 
dined  earlier  than  their  city  friends.  Dr.  Emmett 
was  late,  as  usual.  But  Radha  was  there,  and 
they  had  decided  not  to  wait  for  the  Doctor.  Miss 
Best,  the  elderly  lady  of  the  company,  was  as 
prompt  as  she  was  prim.  She  never  could  quite 
see  why  Esther  had  to  be  late.  In  fact,  many  of 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  153 

the  Doctor's  ways  were  past  finding  out,  so  far 
as  she  was  concerned.  She  could  not  fathom 
their  mystery. 

The  two  women  differed  widely  in  taste  and 
in  age.  Miss  Best  had  the  faculty  of  provoking 
to  activity  all  the  spirit  of  perverseness  in  Esther 
Emmett.  Under  the  most  favorable  circum- 
stances, nothing  better  than  armed  neutrality 
existed  between  them.  Miss  Hammond  and  Miss 
Pierce,  the  other  two  ladies,  were  as  young  and 
as  fun  loving  as  the  Doctor.  But  they  never 
ventured  to  wage  war  on  their  exacting  senior 
companion.  All  the  more,  on  that  account,  did 
they  enjoy  the  frequent  tilts  between  her  and  the 
Doctor. 

Just  after  the  removal  of  the  soup  plates,  the 
orderly  quiet  of  the  room  was  disturbed  by  Es- 
ther's rather  cyclonic  entrance. 

"  Oh,  but  I  am  simply  ravenous,"  she  cried.  "  I 
am  sure  I  can  eat  everything  you  have.  Where 
is  the  menu,  that  I  may  make  it  my  table  of  con- 
tents? " 

Had  glances  been  able  to  pierce,  it  is  certain 
that  Miss  Best's  would  have  looked  a  hole 
through  the  young  woman,  then  and  there.  But 
before  anything  could  be  said,  the  Doctor  was  in 
her  place,  with  head  demurely  bowed  in  thanks- 
giving. Such  was  the  custom  for  all  not  on  time 


154  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

to  be  included  in  the  general  grace.  After  what 
she  considered  a  proper  pause,  perhaps  to  let  the 
prayer  get  well  beyond  the  reach  of  any  tempest 
that  might  otherwise  blow  it  out  of  its  upward 
course,  Miss  Best  felt  moved  to  make  certain  re- 
marks. When  she  chose  to  exercise  her  gifts 
upon  tardiness  and  boisterousness,  in  general, 
and  the  incarnation  of  those  vices  in  Esther  Em- 
mett,  in  particular,  she  could  speak  at  consider- 
able length. 

"  You  know,  my  dear,"  she  said,  by  way  of  a 
conclusion  to  her  long  exhortation,  "  Shakes- 
peare says  that  softness,  gentleness,  and  lowness 
are  ever  an  excellent  thing  in  the  voice  of  woman. 
And,"  with  the  upward  look  that  befits  pious 
reflections,  "  a  greater  Book  tells  of  '  the  orna- 
ment of  a  meek  and  quiet  spirit,  which  is  in  the 
sight  of  God  of  great  price.' ' 

Having  better  use  for  her  mouth  just  then,  the 
Doctor  did  not  interrupt  or  reply.  She  contented 
herself  with  a  grimace.  Meanwhile,  the  twilight 
shadows  were  falling.  When  Miss  Best  was 
ready  to  resume  her  dinner  again,  she  found  it 
difficult  to  see. 

"  Ram  Chunder,"  she  called  sharply  to  a  serv- 
ant, "  light  the  lamps  at  once.  It  is  so  dark  here 
that  we  can't  find  the  way  to  our  mouths." 

"  Keally,  Miss  Best,  if  you  would  just  listen  for 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  155 

a  moment,  I  am  sure  you'd  find  where  your  mouth 
is."  The  Doctor  had  paused  long  enough  to  hurl 
this  bomb  into  the  enemy's  camp. 

The  other  ladies  involuntarily  laughed  outright 
at  this  sally.  Miss  Best  held  her  head  high  in 
the  air,  and  relapsed  into  grim  silence.  A  few 
moments  later  Miss  Emmett  had  reached  the 
lighter  courses  of  her  dinner,  and  was  ready  to 
relieve  the  tension  by  more  amicable  remarks. 
She  had  recalled  an  important  bit  of  news  re- 
ceived that  day  in  a  letter. 

"  Girls,"  she  suddenly  broke  out,  "  you  can't 
guess  who  is  going  to  be  married." 

"Oh,  who?  who?"  cried  the  two  young  ladies 
and  Radha  in  concert.  Even  Miss  Best  thawed 
a  little.  Affairs  of  the  heart  are  of  perennial  in- 
terest to  women,  and  news  was  scarce  at  Mungal- 
pore. 

"  You  must  guess,"  responded  the  provoking 
Doctor. 

"  Why  you,  of  course,"  said  Miss  Hammond. 

"  No  danger,"  declared  Esther  emphatically. 
"  I  shall  remain  an  unplucked  blossom  upon  my 
ancestral  tree." 

The  elderly  lady  made  an  inarticulate  sound, 
which  perhaps  signified  her  conviction  that  such 
would  inevitably  be  Esther  Emmett's  fate. 


156  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  Then  it's  Jennie  Pierce,"  cried  Miss  Ham- 
mond, turning  towards  that  young  lady. 

"  Now  the  idea  of  such  a  thing,  when  there  are 
so  many  pretty  girls  around."  Miss  Pierce  was 
the  youngest  and  prettiest  of  the  missionaries, 
and  sometimes  ventured  a  remark  that  might 
lead  to  her  being  told  about  it. 

"  Jennie  Pierce,"  said  the  Doctor,  solemnly 
shaking  her  finger  at  the  girl  until  she  blushed. 
"  The  utterly  shameless  way  that  some  people  go 
fishing! " 

"  We  can't  guess;  you  must  tell  us,"  they  both 
insisted. 

"  I'll  help  you  then,"  Esther  said.  "  It  is  a 
young  man  whom  you  all  know." 

"Is  he  in  India?"  asked  Miss  Hammond. 

"  Yes,  he  is  in  India." 

That  simplified  the  problem,  for  there  were  few 
young  men  in  India  known  to  them  all.  After 
one  or  two  wild  guesses,  the  right  man  was  hit 
upon. 

"  Oh,  I  know,"  exclaimed  Jennie  Pierce,  "  it's 
that  handsome  Frank  Stanton  in  Calcutta." 

"  Why,  certainly,"  assented  the  Doctor.  "  You 
would  have  guessed  it  long  ago  if  each  of  you 
had  not  been  secretly  harboring  the  hope  that  he 
would  ask  one  of  you  to  help  him  get  married." 

A  hunted  look  had  come  into  Kadha's  eyes. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  157 

What  did  it  mean?  Were  they  joking?  Or  was 
Frank  planning  some  ceremony  in  addition  to  the 
exchange  of  garlands?  Yes,  that  must  be  it;  she 
had  been  stupid  not  to  know  before  that  he  would 
think  it  necessary  to  do  so. 

"  When  is  it  to  be?  Who  is  the  lady?  Where's 
it  to  take  place?"  The  girls  were  plying  the 
Doctor  with  eager  questions. 

"One  at  a  time;  one  at  a  time,"  entreated 
Esther,  stopping  her  ears.  Then  she  took  a  letter 
from  the  bosom  of  her  blouse  and  opened  it  with 
exasperating  deliberation.  Kadha  recognized  the 
writing. 

"  My  sister  has  just  got  the  news,  and  written 
to  me  about  it,"  she  told  them.  "  It's  to  be  in 
Calcutta.  About  two  months  from  now  it  is  to 
take  place.  The  favored  fair  one  is  a  certain 
Mabel  Everest,  from  Kentucky." 

A  smothered  cry  came  from  Kadha's  lips.  Her 
face  was  ashen  when  they  looked  at  her.  She 
arose  from  'her  chair  in  a  bewildered  way, 
steadied  herself  a  moment,  took  a  step  forward, 
and  sank  down  in  a  heap  upon  the  floor. 

Instantly,  Esther  Emmett  was  transformed 
from  a  playful  retailer  of  news  into  a  skilful  pro- 
fessional woman.  The  limp  form  was  laid  upon 
a  couch,  and  restoratives  applied.  After  a  long 
time,  a  tremulous  sigh  escaped  the  girl's  lips,  and 


158  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

she  opened  her  eyes.  But  she  evidently  recog- 
nized no  one,  and  soon  sank  into  a  stupor.  As  the 
ladies  looked  into  each  other's  eyes  over  the  piti- 
ful little  figure,  they  saw  that  the  thought  of  one 
was  the  thought  of  all.  The  beautiful  Bengali 
girl  had  evidently  learned  to  love  the  gifted  young 
stranger  who  had  found  shelter  in  her  home. 

Doctor  Emmett  decided  it  would  be  best  to 
take  Kadha  over  to  her  bungalow.  It  would  be 
quieter  there,  and  the  patient  could  the  more 
easily  be  cared  for.  So  they  placed  her  on  a  cot, 
and  two  servants  carried  her  over  to  the  other 
house.  There  the  medical  skill  that  had  so  often 
done  battle  with  disease  in  the  darkened  huts  of 
the  natives,  and  all  up  and  down  the  line  in  the 
houses  of  the  railway  people,  set  itself  to  save 
the  life  of  the  sorely-stricken  girl. 

When  two  anxious  days  had  passed,  Radha 
came  out  of  her  heavy  stupor.  Then  she  began 
to  rave,  and  to  try  to  destroy  herself.  It  seemed 
that  all  the  mad  jealousy  of  her  hot-blooded  race 
had  concentrated  itself  in  that  one  small  body. 
Sometimes  it  was  Frank  Stanton  against  whom 
she  wildly  raved.  Then  she  would  turn  her  fury 
upon  the  rival  who  had  stolen  her  lover's  heart 
from  her.  Again,  she  would  cry  out  in  agony  to 
her  friends  not  to  torment  her  any  longer,  but 
to  tell  her  the  letter  was  a  cruel  joke. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  159 

Esther  Emmett's  heart  bled  for  the  poor  girl 
as  she  watched  and  worked  with  her  day  and 
night.  Usually  Radha's  ravings  were  in  Bengali. 
The  doctor's  station  was  in  the  Hindi  language 
area;  hence  she  could  only  imperfectly  under- 
stand what  was  said.  But  little  by  little,  what 
with  hearing  broken  sentences  in  English,  and 
what  with  recognizing  Bengali  words  that  re- 
sembled the  Hindi,  the  Doctor  was  able  to  make 
out  the  whole  pitiable  story.  Frank  Stanton's 
dark  secret  was  no  longer  locked  in  his  own 
breast. 


160  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


CHAPTEE  IX 

AMONG    THE    RUINS 

FRANK  STANTON  had  returned  to  Calcutta  as 
soon  as  he  learned  of  Radha's  departure.  He 
could  not  study  anywhere.  His  sleep  was 
troubled  and  feverish.  Active  work  alone  af- 
forded a  little  relief.  He  was  a  haunted  man. 
As  he  sat  by  the  library  table  he  looked  bent 
and  old  and  ill. 

The  man  was  no  confirmed  evil-doer  with  a  con- 
science drugged.  Upon  the  whiteness  of  a  pure 
life  he  bore  the  black  blot  of  a  single  great  sin. 
Day  and  night  it  stared  him  in  the  face.  Night 
and  day  he  felt  that  the  wrath  of  God  was  upon 
him.  Following  the  habit  of  his  life,  he  had  con- 
tinued to  pray  morning  and  night.  But  he  had 
the  consciousness  of  his  petitions  falling  back  as 
an  added  burden  to  his  soul.  There  came  to  his 
mind  some  lines  he  had  seen  long  before — 

'  Sorrow  tracketh  wrong 
As  echo  follows  song, 
On!  On!  On!  On!' 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  161 

Upon  every  page  he  sought  to  read,  the  words 
came  out.  They  swam  before  his  eyes  over  the 
heads  of  the  people  he  addressed  in  his  meetings. 
They  became  letters  of  flame  in  the  darkness  of 
his  room  at  night. 

From  infancy  the  man  had  been  kept  from  the 
breath  of  pollution.  The  protecting  presence  of 
his  mother  had  been  about  him  almost  to  the 
moment  that  he  had  set  out  for  India.  Into  the 
wild  ways  of  some  of  the  lads  at  college  he  had 
never  fallen.  Womanhood  he  had  always  rever- 
enced, knowing  it  scarcely  at  all  except  in  his 
mother  and  his  betrothed.  How,  then,  did  it  hap- 
pen that  he  had  gone  down  before  the  blast  of  a 
single  great  temptation? 

His  had  been  largely  an  untried  virtue.  There 
had  not  been  the  struggle  with  temptation  that 
would  have  made  his  soul  vigorous.  In  such  con- 
dition he  suddenly  came  upon  new  and  trying 
experiences.  Lonely  and  far  from  home,  he  found 
himself  daily  with  a  beautiful  girl.  Never  hav- 
ing known  familiar  intercourse,  even  with  a  sister 
hitherto,  his  life  in  Calcutta  threw  him  daily  with 
one  who  seemed  at  first  a  child,  but  proved  to  be 
a  woman,  with  all  the  subtle,  attractive  powers  of 
womanhood  for  manhood.  His  blood,  too,  was 
heated  by  a  sudden  plunge  into  the  tropics. 
Moreover,  he  daily  saw  in  the  city  about  him 


162  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

sights  so  unaccustomed  as  to  compel  attention. 
To  the  people  of  the  land  it  meant  nothing  that 
the  streets  were  full  of  children  altogether  with- 
out clothing,  and  beautifully  formed  women 
scantily  covered  with  the  thinnest  of  clinging 
robes.  The  people  of  India  had  never  known  any- 
thing else,  and  there  is  no  necessary  connection 
between  clothing  and  morality,  except  that  the 
clothing,  or  its  absence,  must  be  such  as  not  to 
attract  attention  by  being  out  of  the  ordinary. 
But  to  the  young  American  the  sights  of  the  city 
were  strange,  and  thereby  they  became  fuel  for 
the  flames  of  passion.  He  was  to  learn  that  back 
of  the  young  minister  and  missionary  was  the 
young  man,  the  strength  of  whose  natural  de- 
sires had  not  been  suspected,  because  they  had 
never  -tugged  with  all  their  force  at  the  cords 
holding  them  in  leash. 

A  worse  man  might  have  escaped  that  particu- 
lar pitfall.  One  whose  knowledge  was  of  evil  as 
well  as  good,  could  not  have  come  right  upon  it 
without  knowing  it  was  there.  The  wretched 
beings  who  regularly  consort  with  womanhood' at 
its  worst  would  have  known  from  the  first  what 
was  the  danger  of  any  confiding  girl  about  them. 
Some  others,  who  daily  breathe  in  impurity  as 
the  opium  smoker  does  the  fumes  of  his  narcotic, 
might  also  have  escaped — stopping  short  of  put- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  163 

ting  into  action  a  single  one  of  their  erotic 
dreams.  As  a  man  may,  by  little  and  by  little, 
become  able  to  take  at  a  dose  a  quantity  of  poison 
sufficient  to  kill  a  score  of  men,  and  yet  live,  so 
such  creatures  preserve  some  outward  semblance 
of  moral  life  whilst  their  minds  and  hearts  are 
full  of  thoughts  of  which  a  single  one  might 
totally  destroy  a  man  of  purity.  It  is  conceivable 
that  such  a  one  might  have  walked  without  fall- 
ing where  Stanton  did,  wantoning  in  look  and 
thought  of  subtlest  evil. 

Should  a  man,  then,  be  inoculated  with  the 
virus  of  vice  to  prevent  his  death  by  the  disease 
of  sin?  God  forbid!  Would  it  be  wise  to  develop 
a  race  of  opium-eaters  to  avoid  the  danger  of 
having  a  man  killed,  now  and  then,  by  an  acci- 
dental overdose  of  the  drug?  Far  better  for  the 
man  and  his  friends  that  he  take  the  overdose 
at  once,  and  die  outright,  than  to  drag  through 
miserable  years  the  ever-lengthening  chain  of 
slavery  worse  than  death.  Dreadful  as  were  the 
consequences  of  Frank  Stanton's  sin,  to  himself 
and  to  others,  it  was  better  than  though  he  had 
hitherto  lived  a  life  of  defilement.  He  knew  that 
his  sin  was  grievous;  there  was  a  chance  that  he 
might  yet  live.  There  is  hope  for  a  tree  that  it 
may  sprout  again  from  the  roots  and  become  a 
monarch  of  the  forest,  if  it  is  suddenly  cut  down. 


164  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

But  to  girdle  it  about  with  a  deep  wound  and 
leave  it  standing — that  is  to  have  it  perish  root 
and  branch,  though  it  linger  long  between  death 
and  life. 

At  that  time,  however,  Stanton  was  groping  in 
the  dark.  It  was  yet  uncertain  whether  his  past 
would  prove  a  stumbling-block  over  which  he 
would  fall  to  total  ruin,  or  a  stepping-stone  by 
which  he  might  climb  to  a  nobler  life.  During 
his  absence  from  the  city  he  had  tried  to  decide 
upon  some  course  of  action.  But  the  problems  of 
life  are  seldom  simple;  when  personal  wrong- 
doing is  introduced  as  a  factor,  they  become 
hopelessly  complex.  Had  he  not  been  bound  to 
another,  Stanton  might  have  found  a  simple  solu- 
tion to  the  problem  by  marrying  Eadha.  As  it 
was  such  a  step  would  ruin  the  life  of  the  loyal 
girl  who  expected  soon  to  be  his  bride. 

How  could  he  write  Mabel  Everest  the 
wretched  tale  that  would  make  her  give  him  up? 
And  his  mother — what  would  it  mean  to  her?  As 
for  himself,  he  could  bear  neither  the  thought  of 
giving  up  his  betrothed,  nor  the  bitter  shame  of 
exposure.  Everywhere  he  turned  he  ran  into  a 
solid  wall  of  blank  despair.  No  thoroughfare  out 
of  his  trouble  could  be  found.  So  he  was  letting 
matters  take  their  course.  Mabel  should  come  to 


I 


"And  for  God's  sake  tell  me  it  is  not  true,"' 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  165 

him,  as  it  had  been  planned  before  this  tragedy 
began. 

It  was  the  sheerest  madness  to  think  that  such 
a  thing  could  be  wise.  He  did  not  think  so. 
When  he  faced  the  question,  he  knew  it  was  the 
way  to  ruin  all.  But  he  could  not  decide  to  act 
when  action  meant,  at  once,  stabbing  the  hearts 
that  loved  him  best,  and  cutting  the  only  cord 
binding  him  to  all  the  dearest  hopes  of  his  life. 

Things  were  not  to  be  left  to  take  their  course, 
however.  For  some  reason,  hidden  in  the  deep, 
unfathomable  mystery  of  Providence,  no  one  of  a 
thousand  things  that  might  have  happened  to 
prevent  his  fall  had  happened.  Now,  matters 
were  to  be  taken  out  of  his  own  hands,  and  Frank 
was  to  be  saved  from  drifting  on  to  total  ruin. 

Sitting  in  the  lamp-light  by  the  library  table, 
the  young  man  had  been  trying  to  read.  He  had 
succeeded  only  in  wandering  about  in  the  maze  of 
his  own  difficulties.  With  book  fallen  upon  the 
floor  and  his  face  buried  in  his  hands,  he  was 
groaning  out  his  misery  when  he  heard  a  step  be- 
side him.  He  glanced  up  to  see  Richard  Clifford 
standing  there,  with  the  look  of  a  dead  man  upon 
his  face. 

"  Stanton,"  he  said,  "  read  that,  and  for  God's 
sake  tell  me  it  is  not  true." 

Clifford  thrust  a  letter  into  his  hand.    It  was 


166  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

from  Mrs.  Clifford,  telling  her  husband  what 
Esther  Emmett  had  written  her  about  Radha. 
For  a  few  moments  Stanton  tried  in  vain  to  read 
it.  The  lines  danced  before  his  eyes.  Then  out  of 
the  blur  there  seemed  to  come  the  words  that  had 
so  long  haunted  him — '  Sorrow  tracketh  wrong. . . 
On !  On !  On !  On ! '  But  at  last  he  managed  to 
read  enough  to  satisfy  himself  his  secret  was 
known.  The  paper  fell  from  his  hand.  He  hud- 
dled together  in  his  chair.  With  the  look  of  a 
hunted  animal,  he  turned  his  head  from  side 
to  side.  Through  lips  so  dry  that  they  cracked, 
he  spoke;  what  he  said  was  only  a  cry. 

"  Have  pity  upon  me,  O  my  friend." 

"  It  is  true,  then?  "  asked  Clifford  in  a  hollow 
voice. 

"  Yes." 

"  This,  then,  is  the  way  we  guard  the  sacred 
trust  committed  to  us  by  our  dead  benefactor! 
Such  is  the  helper  who  comes  to  me  to  aid  in  the 
work!  Thus  do  we  show  the  Hindus  what  Chris- 
tian life  is!"  Clifford  seemed  almost  to  be  talk- 
ing to  himself  as  he  ground  the  words  out  be- 
tween his  set  teeth. 

He  paced  the  length  of  the  room  and  back, 
stopping  again  before  the  cringing  figure.  "  Why 
did  you  not  marry  the  poor  girl?"  he  de- 
manded. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  167 

"  I  could  not  marry  a  Bengali,"  Stanton  plead- 
ed. "  Besides,  I  had  already  promised  to  marry 
another." 

"  Many  better  men  than  you  have  married 
women  of  this  country.  They  found  them  worthy 
wives,  and  left  descendants  who  are  an  honor  to 
their  names.  As  for  Miss  Everest,  I  do  not  know 
her,  but  no  doubt  she  will  spurn  you  as  she  would 
the  filth  of  these  streets.  You  are  mad  not  to 
know  it,"  Clifford  rejoined  severely. 

"  I  will  go  to  her  and  marry  her  now,"  said 
Stanton  with  suddenly  formed  resolution. 

"  It  is  too  late,"  said  Clifford  bitterly.  "  The 
poor  child  is  crazy,  and  Esther  thinks  she  will 
surely  die." 

Both  were  silent  for  a  few  minutes.  Clifford 
dropped  wearily  into  a  chair,  and  stared  straight 
before  him. 

"  I  have  sinned,  indeed,"  Stanton  murmured 
after  a  time,  "  but  I  was  fearfully  tempted. 
•  She—" 

At  that  Clifford  sprang  up  with  an  energy 
which  overturned  his  chair.  He  towered  above 
his  companion  an  embodiment  of  wrath.  Stanton 
had  not  really  intended  to  lay  the  blame  upon 
Radha.  He  merely  meant  to  try  to  explain  how 
one  thing  had  led  to  another.  But  he  had 
touched  a  mountain,  clothed  in  cloud,  and  smoke, 


i68  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

and  thunder,  and  lightning.  The  man's  words 
were  low,  but  full  of  passionate  fury. 

"  She ! — Don't  come  to  me  with  an  excuse  as 
old  as  sin  itself,  and  tell  me  what  she  did.  Who 
is  she?  Daughter  of  our  dead  benefactor.  A 
girl  who  never  consciously  did  a  wrong  thing  in 
her  life.  Child  of  a  subject  race,  whose  customs 
and  climate  have  sapped  their  strength  for  cen- 
turies. One  of  the  women  of  India,  taught  for 
millenniums  to  please  and  obey  men.  Yes,  a 
woman  with  a  heart  of  love  that  made  her  your 
slave.  Don't  take  her  name  upon  your  lips. 
Were  you  in  your  native  state,  and  had  this 
wronged  child  a  father  there,  you  would  probably 
be  shot  down  like  a  dog  in  the  streets." 

"  I  call  heaven  to  witness  that  I  didn't  intend 
this  wrong,"  cried  Stanton. 

"  Hear  me  out,  Stanton,"  Clifford  went  on. 
"  I  am  determined  that  you  shall  see  yourself  to- 
night. 'Didn't  intend  it?'  Who  are  you  that 
you  should  go  drifting  along  to  the  destruction  of 
others?  Oh,  no,  you  didn't  intend  it,  and  it  is 
not  your  fault ;  so  it  must  be  Radha's !  I  should 
think  the  very  name  of  woman  would  burn  your 
lips  hereafter.  Your  pleasure  has  been  taken. 
Now  you  will  slink  away  to  forget  this  broken 
life  and  begin  anew,  unfettered  by  the  past.  But 
this  poor  child  will  stay  here  to  live  or  die  in 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  169 

shame.  Your  mother's  gray  hairs  will  go  down 
to  the  grave  with  sorrow.  Your  promised  wife 
will  eat  out  her  heart  with  grief.  As  you  be- 
stride the  ruins  of  these  three  women's  lives,  don't 
try  to  make  excuses  to  me." 

When  he  paused,  Clifford  noticed  that  Stanton 
had  bowed  his  head  upon  his  arms  on  the  table, 
and  was  shaken  by  the  hard,  tearless  sobs  of  a 
strong  man  made  weak  by  overmastering  grief. 
His  face  softened  somewhat,  and  he  turned  away, 
and  stood  looking  out  the  window  into  the  dark- 
ness. In  a  few  minutes  he  began  to  speak  again, 
but  less  severely. 

"  I  have  more  to  say,  Stanton,  but  it  shall  be  of 
a  different  tenor.  It  is  not  my  place  to  avenge 
this  wrong,  or  even  to  be  your  judge.  Perhaps  I 
have  spoken  too  harshly,  for  I  don't  want  to  drive 
you  to  despair.  You  are  worth  too  much  to  sell 
yourself  to  the  devil.  But  I  could  not  help  speak- 
ing my  mind.  You  must  know  what  this  means 
to  me.  I  love  Radha  as  a  sister.  She  was  com- 
mitted to  my  care  by  her  noble  father.  This  thing 
will  probably  get  out  and  make  our  cause  a 
stench  in  the  nostrils  of  the  Hindu  community. 
Enough  of  that  for  the  present,  though,"  he  said, 
checking  himself.  "  It  is  all  marred  now  beyond 
repair,  I  want  to  advise  you  what  to  do." 

"  If  you  will  advise  and  help  me,"  said  Stanton, 


i;o  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

raising  his  head  from  the  table,  "  you  will  be  my 
friend  indeed." 

"  First,  then,  I  advise  you  to  leave  this  house 
to-night.  It  is  not  fitting  that  you  should  stay 
under  this  roof.  Go  to  a  hotel,  and  I'll  send  your 
things  over  to  you  in  the  morning.  Next,  you 
should  write  to  Miss  Everest  and  tell  her  not  to 
come  out  here  to  meet  disappointment  and  shame. 
You  better  write  to  your  mother,  too,  before  she 
hears  of  it  from  other  sources.  And  write  like  a 
man,  without  any  excuses,  and  without  re- 
proaches upon  womanhood.  Finally,  leave  this 
country  forever.  You  can  do  no  good  here.  Go 
home  and  play  the  man.  You  can  do  that  best  by 
not  whining  over  any  consequences  that  come  up- 
on you  from  this  folly.  Above  all,  keep  from  the 
cowardice  that  tries  to  drown  misery  in  suicide 
or  vice." 

"  I  thank  you  for  your  counsel,"  Stanton  said, 
rising.  "  I  shall  try  to  follow  it." 

An  hour  later,  he  sat  in  a  room  of  the  Great 
Eastern  Hotel.  The  Mukerji  home  he  was  to  see 
no  more.  His  work  was  broken  off,  and  a  good 
cause  injured.  But  as  for  that,  Clifford  was  the 
kind  of  a  general  to  wrest  victory  from  the  jaws 
of  defeat.  Stanton  was  not  then  thinking  of  such 
things.  Writing  materials  lay  on  the  table  be- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  171 

fore  him.  He  was  trying  to  write  to  his  mother 
and  his  betrothed. 

It  was  a  hard  task,  and  a  bitter.  Many  times 
did  he  start  to  write,  and  then  throw  down  his 
pen  in  despair.  The  faces  of  those  two  women 
came  between  him  and  the  page.  At  times  they 
seemed  to  be  looking  at  him  with  perfect  trust,  as 
though  assuring  him  that  nothing  could  make 
them  believe  what  he  wrote.  Again,  he  saw  them 
shrink  away  from  him  with  horror-stricken, 
averted  looks,  as  from  one  who  had  forever  cut 
himself  off  from  the  circle  wherein  their  pure 
lives  moved.  Yet  again,  the  faces  were  so  wan 
and  tearful  with  grief  that  he  was  sure  their  sor- 
row was  eating  out  their  lives. 

Then  there  arose  before  him  the  memory  of  past 
happy  days.  He  was  playing  about  at  home  free 
from  care.  Later,  he  saw  himself  fighting  for 
little  Mabel  in  the  street.  By  and  by,  he  was  at 
college,  bravely  doing  his  tasks,  telling  over  to 
Mother  at  night  the  victories  of  the  day,  sitting 
proudly  at  Mabel's  side  in  the  old  chapel  at  times 
of  public  entertainment.  Mabel  and  Mother, 
they  were  the  golden  cord  binding  him  to  all  that 
was  brightest  and  best  in  the  past.  Was  his  own 
hand  now  to  cut  that  cord? 

And  the  future — it  came  before  him  as  he  had 
so  often  dreamed  of  it.  His  own  home,  his  Mabel. 


172  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Ah,  it  should  yet  be.  He  would  let  her  come  to 
him.  The  wedding  should  take  place  before  she 
heard  of  this  dark  stain.  She  would  forgive  him 
then.  Together  they  would  go  from  that  accursed 
land  and  be  happy  somewhere.  What  mattered 
it  where,  if  only  he  might  have  Mabel  with  him? 
The  half-written  letters  were  torn  to  pieces  and 
flung  away. 

Suddenly  the  burden  of  the  past  weeks  seemed 
to  fall  from  him.  He  was  in  the  home  on  Corn- 
wallis  Street  again.  The  Cliffords  were  there, 
and  Radha  was  there.  All  were  in  gala  attire, 
?nd  the  house  was  decked  with  flowers.  Up  the 
stairway,  the  strains  of  the  wedding  march  float- 
ed to  him.  Radha  came  to  tell  him  his  bride  was 
ready  for  him. 

"  Ah,  little  sister,"  he  said  to  her,  "I  had  an 
evil  dream  last  night.  I  thought  you  had  come  be- 
tween me  and  my  Mabel." 

"  Silly  boy  to  dream  such  things,"  she  replied. 
"  How  could  your  little  sister  come  between  you 
and  your  beloved?  " 

She  led  him  to  Mabel,  and  together  they  went 
down  the  broad  stairs  to  the  music  of  the  wed- 
ding march.  Little  Radha  went  before  them, 
looking  radiant,  and  scattering  roses  in  their 
way.  He  was  smiling  to  think  how  sorely  that 
bad  dream  had  troubled  him. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  173 

Then  he  found  himself  sitting  in  his  chair  at 
the  hotel.  Worn  out  with  misery,  he  had  dropped 
asleep  and  dreamed.  As  he  realized  which  was 
the  dream  and  which  the  reality,  he  cried  out 
against  the  bitterness  of  his  fate. 

The  struggle  began  once  more.  But  at  last 
the  letters  were  written  and  sealed.  It  was  bet- 
ter so.  He  would  not  try  to  drag  Mabel  down  in- 
to the  pit  where  he  had  fallen.  Nor  would  he 
leave  his  mother  to  learn  his  ruin  from  others. 
Perhaps  he  could  comfort  her  heart,  at  least, 
when  he  got  home.  She  would  not  cast  him  off, 
whatever  others  might  do.  After  the  letters  were 
written,  he  threw  himself  upon  the  bed  without 
undressing.  Despite  his  suffering,  he  slept  better 
than  he  had  for  many  nights. 

Two  weeks  later,  Stanton  was  homeward 
bound.  As  the  steamer  dropped  down  the  river, 
he  stood  looking  wistfully  out  upon  the  receding 
city.  With  what  high  hopes  and  noble  purposes 
had  he  arrived  there  a  little  more  than  a  year  be- 
fore. How  much  he  had  sacrificed  to  come  out  to 
India  for  the  help  of  its  needy  millions.  It  had 
all  come  to  nothing;  no  help  for  anybody,  and 
only  ruin  for  him.  The  ship  was  passing  the 
Botanical  Gardens.  A  great  lump  rose  in  his 
throat.  Turning  hastily  away,  he  went  to  his 


174  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

cabin.    It  was  all  a  dark  riddle,  too  hard  for  him 
to  read. 

Lying  there  in  his  bunk,  he  suddenly  raised  his 
head  and  listened.  A  bitter  smile  came  to  his 
lips.  In  the  thump  of  the  ship's  engines,  and  the 
vibrations  of  the  screw,  he  heard  the  singing  of 
a  dirge.  From  that  moment  it  never  left  him.  It 
sang  in  the  day  and  it  sang  in  the  night.  Going 
fast  or  going  slow,  those  engines  never  lost  the 
monotonous  refrain — 

'  Sorrow  tracketh  wrong 
As  echo  follows  song, 
On!  Onl  On!  On!' 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  175 


CHAPTER  X 

SHIPS  THAT  PASS 

MRS.  STANTON  looked  up  from  the  paper  she 
had  been  trying  to  read.  She  saw  by  the  sitting- 
room  clock  that  it  was  past  the  usual  hour  for  the 
afternoon  mail  delivery.  For  several  days  she 
had  been  looking  for  her  weekly  letter  from  India. 

"  Surely,  I  shall  get  a  letter  this  evening,"  she 
said  to  herself,  by  way  of  reassurance.  It  was 
growing  so  late  that  she  needed  all  the  expedients 
available  to  keep  her  from  losing  hope  for  that 
day. 

The  weekly  letters  from  her  boy  were  the  little 
woman's  life.  She  could  not  tell  just  what  day 
they  would  arrive;  but  they  always  came,  and 
usually  the  latter  part  of  the  week.  They  were 
a  month  old  when  they  reached  her.  That,  how- 
ever, seldom  obtruded  itself  upon  her.  Unless 
there  was  something  to  awaken  her  anxiety,  she 
did  not  stop  to  think  what  might  have  happened 


176  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

during  the  month  that  the  news  was  coming. 
Reading  Frank's  letters  was  almost  like  listening 
to  him  talk.  Mother  and  son  had  been  close  com- 
panions so  long  that  they  understood  each  other, 
and  talking  or  writing  was  like  thinking  aloud 
together.  Abounding  in  accounts  of  his  doings, 
of  his  new  friends,  of  all  the  strange  sights  and 
sounds  of  a  far  country,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
finer  personal  touches  which  breathed  the  writer's 
love  for  his  mother,  and  revealed  the  sentiments 
of  his  soul,  it  it  no  wonder  that  Mrs.  Stanton 
eagerly  awaited  the  arrival  of  her  son's  weekly 
letter. 

That  winter  day,  the  sky  was  heavily  overcast. 
Although  it  was  not  late,  the  room  was  growing 
dark,  except  about  the  open  fire.  Going  to  the 
window,  the  lady  peered  down  Broadway  in  hopes 
of  seeing  the  postman.  When  almost  ready  to 
conclude  that  he  must  have  passed  her  by,  she  was 
rewarded  by  seeing  him  come  towards  the  house. 
A  moment  later,  her  old  servant  put  the  mail  in- 
to her  hand.  She  saw  the  coveted  letter  among 
the  others. 

"  Sam,"  she  said,  "  you  may  lock  up  the  house 
for  the  night  when  you  are  ready  to  go  to  your 
cabin.  I  am  going  up  to  my  own  room  now." 

She  had  been  out  to  afternoon  tea,  and  did  not 
care  for  anything  else  that  night.  The  evening 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  177 

would  be  spent  enjoying  her  letter  and  beginning 
one  in  reply. 

Upon  reaching  her  room,  Mrs.  Stanton  heaped 
fresh  coal  on  her  fire,  and  settled  herself  comfort- 
ably in  her  large,  easy-chair.  No  epicure  knew 
better  how  to  augment  the  pleasures  of  his  table 
by  faultless  surroundings  and  service,  than  this 
little  woman  knew  how  to  heighten  the  delight  of 
an  hour  with  her  son's  letter.  As  he  would  like 
to  see  her,  and  just  as  she  used  to  enjoy  a  pleasant 
evening's  chat  with  him — that  was  the  ideal  she 
kept  before  her  at  such  times.  The  letter  was  an 
unusually  long  one,  she  noticed  by  its  weight  as 
she  opened  it. 

Only  a  few  words  had  been  read,  when  the 
widow  paused  with  a  frightened  look  on  her  face. 
Then  she  read  on  through  line  after  line  of  the 
story  of  the  fall  of  her  heart's  idol.  No  cry  es- 
caped her  lips.  There  were  no  tears  in  her  eyes. 
But  her  hand  trembled  as  she  folded  the  pages 
and  put  them  back  into  the  envelope.  In  the  fire- 
light her  face  shone  with  spectral  whiteness  as 
she  leaned  forward  and  laid  the  letter  upon  the 
coals.  Evidently  she  was  dazed  and  benumbed, 
as  she  might  have  been  by  a  heavy  blow.  Per- 
haps that  took  some  of  the  sharpness  off  the  pain 
at  her  heart. 

Reclining  in  her  deep,  cushioned  chair,  her 


178  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

mind  went  back  over  the  years  of  her  boy's  life. 
It  was  in  the  days  of  her  young  wifehood,  and 
heaven  had  just  opened  before  her  in  the  eyes  of 
her  angel  baby.  The  little  hands,  soft  and  pink 
as  rose's  petal,  were  upon  her  face  and  breast.  In 

her  ears  sounded  the  music  of  a  baby  voice 

It  was  a  few  years  later,  and  he  a  wee  lad  at 
school,  full  of  wise  sayings  and  droll  ways  that 

delighted  his  happy  father  and  mother Ah, 

yes,  it  was  not  long  after  that  when  her  widow- 
hood darkened  her  home  and  heart.  She  was 
weeping  by  the  side  of  her  beloved  dead ;  she  felt 
a  pair  of  sturdy  little  arms  about  her  neck.  A 
tearful  voice  was  manfully  bidding  her  not  to 
cry,  and  repeating  over  and  over, i  I  will  take  care 
of  you  now.'  ....  The  years  have  sped  on.  It 
seemed  so  strange  for  her  boy  to  be  a  young  man. 
But  the  passing  years  were  full  of  the  boy  whose 
devotion  kept  her  heart  warm,  whose  talents 
made  her  proud,  whose  love  of  all  that  was  good 

filled  her  days  and  nights  with  praise Off 

to  India  now,  and  she  left  in  her  loneliness.  That 
was  a  cloud,  but  it  was  shot  through  and  through 
with  glory.  It  was  worth  while  to  be  lonely  to 
have  such  a  boy.  She  might  never  see  him  again. 
There  would  be  a  waiting-place  in  another  land, 
though,  and  she  and  the  noble  father,  who  had 
gone  on  before,  long  ago,  would  watch  till  he 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  179 

should  come  from  his  brave  toil  amid  the  shouts 
of  the  harvest  home,  bearing  precious  sheaves 
with  him. 

But  no ;  she  was  in  the  present  once  more.  All 
those  bright  visions  had  been  swallowed  up  in 
blackness.  Between  the  sacred  memories  of 
the  Land  of  Used  to  Be,  and  the  beckoning  splen- 
dors of  the  Land  of  Yet  to  Be,  there  hung  the 
clouds  of  sin.  Though  she  desired  with  unut- 
terable longing  to  see  her  boy  go  forward  into 
that  beautiful  future,  she  felt  it  had  ceased  to  be 
possible.  Sterner  than  cherubim  and  flaming 
swords  at  Eden's  gate,  there  stood  barring  the 
way  before  him  the  cruel  demon  of  his  own  folly. 
Forevermore,  it  must  lie  where  his  feet  could  not 
stand — the  country  of  the  undefiled  who  have 
needed  no  cleansing,  the  Land  of  Might  Have 
Been. 

It  was  late  when  Mrs.  Stanton  roused  herself 
from  her  revery.  White,  drawn  lips,  dark  cir- 
cles about  the  eyes,  hands  pressed  convulsively 
to  her  heart,  showed  that  the  semi-stupor  of  the 
sudden  shock  had  passed.  Her  eyes  sought  the 
pictured  face  of  Hoffman's  great  Christ  hanging 
before  her.  The  empty  arms  of  bereaved  mother- 
hood stretched  out  towards  the  suffering  Saviour. 

"  O,  my  Lord,"  she  cried  through  twitching 
lips.  "  I  gave  my  boy  to  Thee.  My  heart  fed  up- 


i8o  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

on  the  hope  that  he  would  lead  the  lost  children 
of  a  sin-stricken  land  to  Thee.  But  he  has  lost 
his  way  in  the  darkness,  and  led  a  little  one  of 
Thine  into  sin.  Forgive  us,  Lord,  that  we  have 
thus  dealt  with  Thee.  And,  O,  may  Thy  love  go 
after  my  boy  until  he  be  drawn  back  to  Thee 
again." 

The  servants  came  into  the  room  in  the  gray 
morning.  They  found  the  ashes  cold  upon  the 
hearth.  The  light  of  the  lamp  shone  upon  their 
mistress  sitting  in  her  big  arm-chair.  When 
they  called  to  her  she  did  not  answer.  Though 
they  shook  her,  she  did  not  awake.  She  never 
will. 

The  same  postman  who  delivered  Mrs.  Stan- 
ton's  letter  stopped  a  few  minutes  later  at  the 
Everest  home.  Another  woman  was  to  cross  her 
brook  Kidron  that  night,  and  enter  alone  into 
her  Gethsemane. 

Mabel  Everest  was  in  her  room.  She  was  sit- 
ting on  the  floor  with  a  great  litter  of  papers 
about  her.  Preparatory  to  going  to  India,  she 
was  looking  through  her  old  letters.  Most  of 
them  had  been  torn  to  pieces  and  heaped  beside 
her  for  burning.  There  was  one  collection  too 
sacred  to  be  destroyed.  Those  she  had  been  sort- 
ing out  and  tying  together  in  packages,  accord- 
ing to  the  years  that  they  were  written. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  181 

It  was  a  long  task.  In  the  first  place,  their 
name  was  legion — for  they  were  many.  Then, 
there  were  numerous  passages  in  them  that  had 
to  be  read  and  mused  upon.  They  covered  quite 
a  period  of  years,  and  ranged  all  the  way  from 
hastily  scribbled  notes  to  long  letters.  Read  in 
sequence,  they  might  have  been  called  '  The 
Record  of  the  Evolution  of  Love.'  It  was  an  il- 
lustrated treatise  too,  for  there  were  photographs 
along  with  the  letters.  The  pictures  were  of 
various  sizes  and  styles ;  chiefly  of  the  lover,  oc- 
casionally of  the  girl,  or  again,  of  both  together. 
Mabel  was  tying  them  in  the  packages  of  letters 
belonging  to  the  same  time.  Evidently  it  was  a 
pleasant  task,  for  the  girl's  face  glowed,  and  her 
eyes  shone  with  a  soft  light.  She  was  tying  the 
last  packet  and  gently  humming  a  love  song  to 
herself  when  there  was  a  tap  at  her  door. 

"  Come  in,"  she  called,  without  rising. 

A  colored  girl  entered  with  a  letter.  Mabel 
shook  her  hair  back  from  her  face  and  smiled 
up  at  the  girl. 

"  Mattie,  won't  you  have  fun  cleaning  up  this 
room  to-morrow?"  she  said,  glancing  around  at 
the  litter. 

Before  the  girl  left  the  room,  Mabel  was  im- 
patiently tearing  open  the  letter.  It  was  the  last 
one  she  expected  to  get  before  setting  out  upon 


182  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

her  long  voyage.  Deep  down  in  her  heart,  that 
journey  to  her  bridal  was  a  sore  cross  to  the  girl. 
Her  dream  had  ever  been  of  the  lover  coming  for 
her,  and  a  wedding  in  her  own  church  among  her 
friends.  But  what  will  not  a  woman  do  for 
love's  sake?  The  regrets  were  buried  beneath 
her  joy  in  going  to  her  own  handsome  lover-boy. 

A  stifled  cry  escaped  the  girl's  lips  almost  as 
soon  as  she  began  to  read.  She  let  the  paper  fall 
as  though  it  had  burnt  her.  With  a  vague  hope 
that  there  might  be  some  mistake  about  it,  she 
picked  it  up  and  breathlessly  turned  to  the  sig- 
nature. The  writing  was  only  too  surely  Frank's, 
so  she  read  it  to  the  end.  The  confession  sought 
to  spare  her  as  much  as  possible,  but  it  made  her 
know  that  its  writer  had  been  twined  about  with 
hissing  serpents  of  vice.  Her  face  was  burning 
hot  with  shame  as  that  breath  of  impurity 
touched  her  virgin  soul.  To  think  that  such  a 
thing  had  come  near  her  life!  In  a  hazy  way,  she 
had  known  that  the  like  was  supposed  to  happen 
in  the  world.  But  not  in  her  world;  not  to  her 
hero,  who  had  been  her  high-priest,  continually 
ministering  unto  her  in  holy  things! 

Mabel  threw  herself,  face  downward,  prostrate 
on  the  floor,  with  outstretched  hands  clutching  at 
the  rugs.  By  and  by,  she  fell  to  moaning  softly, 
as  she  lay  there.  Then  she  called  upon  her 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  183 

mother,  long  dead,  to  come  and  comfort  her.  At 
length,  tears  came  to  her  relief — passionate,  bit- 
ter, pitiful  tears.  Finally,  she  grew  calm,  and 
began  to  think.  She  was  a  girl  of  strength ;  there 
were  problems  to  be  faced  and  solved.  Thus  she 
lay  a  long  time.  When  she  arose  and  crept  to  bedy 
as  a  wounded  bird  might  flutter  back  to  its  nest, 
her  resolution  was  taken. 

Frank  Stanton  was  coming  home — wrould  be 
there  in  a  few  weeks.  She  could  not  see  him, 
could  not  marry  him  now.  He  belonged  to 
another.  Neither  could  she  bear  to  think  of 
staying  there  to  explain  to  her  friends  why  she 
was  not  leaving,  and  why  she  had  given  Frank 
up.  She  would  say  nothing  of  what  had  hap- 
pened. His  mother  would  know  about  his  home- 
coming. The  little  woman  must  be  seen  in  the 
morning  and  entreated  to  keep  the  secret.  There 
would  be  no  difficulty  in  getting  such  a  promise, 
Mabel  felt  sure.  All  her  arrangements  were  made 
for  her  to  go  to  India;  to  India  she  would 
go? 

Failure  to  respond  to  the  call  for  dinner 
brought  her  brother's  wife  to  the  room  to  inquire 
why.  Mabel  pleaded  being  weary  with  her  day's 
work.  She  tried  to  speak  bravely,  for  she  had 
a  part  to  play.  But  her  voice  sounded  so  dead 
tired  that  the  sister  went  down  to  tell  her  hus- 


184  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

band  that  all  the  final  preparations  and  festivities 
were  wearing  the  girl  out. 

Intelligence  of  Mrs.  Stanton's  death  came  early 
next  morning.  That  made  Mabel's  swollen  eyes 
and  depressed  spirits  seem  natural,  for  she  loved 
the  elder  woman  devotedly.  It  also  put  an  end 
to  all  farewell  festivities.  The  wind  was  being 
mercifully  tempered  to  the  shorn  lamb.  While 
shielded  from  her  acquaintances,  and  left  to  hide 
her  grief  in  her  home,  she  was  kept  busy  with 
thoughts  and  work  for  her  departure.  That  made 
impossible  exclusive  devotion  to  her  sorrow. 

There  was  little  wisdom  in  the  plan  made  for 
the  girl  to  go  to  India  at  the  beginning  of  the  hot 
season.  She  and  her  lover  had  not  realized  that, 
however,  and  they  had  both  been  impatient. 
Moreover,  she  was  going  with  Miss  Kenwick,  a 
veteran  missionary  returning  after  her  furlough, 
who  thought  all  seasons  equally  good  in  India. 
The  lady  had  spent  many  years  there,  was  able  to 
go  about  in  the  sun  without  even  wearing  a 
topi,  and  seemed  really  to  enjoy  the  heat.  It  was 
in  accord  with  human  nature  that  she  should 
have  little  patience  with  anyone  who  could  not  do 
the  same.  No  Board  had  any  direct  voice  in  the 
matter  of  Mabel's  going,  as  she  was  to  be  an  hon- 
orary worker,  at  her  own  and  her  future  hus- 
band's charges.  They  had  planned  to  be  married 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  185 

in  Calcutta,  before  the  beginning  of  the  severe 
heat.  Their  honeymoon  was  to  be  passed  in  the 
mountains  at  the  time  of  year  that  Stanton  could 
best  leave  his  work.  Thus  it  had  been  arranged. 
Therefore,  just  a  week  after  the  arrival  of  Frank's 
confession,  Mabel's  brother  left  her  in  charge  of 
Miss  Renwick,  as  the  ship  steamed  out  of  New 
York  harbor. 

The  voyage  was  dreary  enough  for  the  poor 
girl.  Nothing  had  the  power  to  interest  her  very 
much.  Yet  the  incidents  of  the  journey  served,  to 
divert  her  at  times,  and  the  necessity  of  keeping 
up  a  semblance  of  cheerfulness  saved  her  from 
giving  way  to  her  sorrow.  Her  feelings  towards 
Frank  were  rather  mixed.  After  the  passing  of 
her  first  burst  of  indignation  because  of  the 
misery  in  which  he  had  involved  her,  she  had  tried 
to  exculpate  him.  He  had  been  entrapped  by  the 
very  people  he  had  gone  to  help.  A  designing 
woman  had  betrayed  him  into  sin  and  ruined  his 
life.  At  such  thoughts,  her  jealous  anger  had 
kindled  against  Radha.  But  there  would  always 
arise  before  her  the  picture  of  the  little  Bengali 
girl  as  Frank  had  so  often  described  her  in  his 
letters.  Then,  too,  his  last  letter  had  manfully 
disdained  to  reflect  any  blame  on  Radha.  She 
found  herself  pitying  the  little  stranger,  and  even 
thinking  that  she  might  try  to  comfort  her  if  she 


186  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

found  her  alive.  In  different  ways,  they  both  had 
been  wronged  by  the  man  they  loved.  Sorrowing 
together,  they  might  find  some  balm  for  their 
wounded  hearts  in  each  other's  love.  Yet  even 
Mabel's  noble  heart  found  it  difficult  to  cherish 
such  sentiments  towards  the  woman  who  had 
come  between  her  and  happiness.  She  did  not 
think  that  she  could  bear  to  see  Radha.  For  the 
most  part,  she  gave  herself  up  to  a  mingling  of 
anger  and  pity  towards  Frank,  and  sorrow  for 
the  blighting  of  her  own  life's  dream. 

Landing  at  Southampton,  Mabel  and  her  com- 
panion went  at  once  to  London,  and  embarked 
for  Bombay.  While  moving  swiftly  in  the  Medi- 
terranean Sea  on  their  eastward  course,  they 
passed  very  close  to  a  large  steamer  plowing 
slowly  in  the  opposite  direction.  The  ships  sig- 
naled each  other  as  they  passed.  Everybody  was 
on  deck,  of  course,  on  both  vessels.  With  good 
glasses,  even  the  faces  of  the  passengers  could 
be  made  out  on  the  two  steamers.  But  Mabel  had 
loaned  her  binocular  to  her  friend.  So  she  did 
not  see  on  the  hurricane  deck  of  the  passing  ship 
a  pale  and  listless  looking  young  man  who  was 
paying  little  heed  to  what  was  transpiring.  It 
was  Frank  Stanton.  Thus  at  close  range,  all 
unknowingly,  passed  those  two,  passed,  and  went 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  187 

their  different  ways,  until  half  the  broad  earth's 
circumference  stretched  between  them. 

Upon  arriving  in  Bombay,  Mabel  was  com- 
pelled to  be  interested  in  spite  of  herself.  The 
first  moments  were  filled  with  the  anguish  of  her 
changed  life.  It  was  there,  at  that  very  hour, 
that  Frank  would  have  met  her,  to  take  her  on  in 
triumph  to  Calcutta  and  their  nuptials.  She 
had  to  shut  her  lips  very  tight  to  keep  back  a  sob 
as  she  went  ashore.  But  she  was  soon  caught  up 
in  a  whirl  that  put  an  end  to  all  brooding 
thoughts.  They  drove  first  to  the  Apollo  Hotel. 
Then  Miss  Ren  wick  took  the  girl  out  to  purchase 
some  needed  equipment.  First  came  a  solah  topi, 
the  inevitable  pith  helmet.  Her  companion  had 
refused  to  let  her  buy  one  in  London  or  Port 
Said.  The  genuine  article  could  best  be  had  in 
India.  So  the  girl  had  kept  out  of  the  sun  after 
leaving  Suez.  When  she  put  on  the  new  purchase 
and  looked  at  herself  in  a  glass,  her  first  thought 
was  one  of  thankfulness  that  Frank  was  not  there 
to  see  her.  She  smiled  wanly,  though,  at  that  bit 
of  feminine  vanity,  as  she  remembered  why  he 
was  not  there.  To  her  no  small  amazement  they 
went  next  to  a  bazar  where  sheets,  pillows,  and 
long,  narrow  quilts  were  bought,  and  made  up 
into  a  huge  bundle  for  them. 

"  Why,  child,"  said  Miss  Renwick  when  ques- 


i88  FIRES  OF  DESIRE. 

tioned  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  procedure,  "  they 
are  to  sleep  on  in  the  train,  of  course." 

When  they  at  last  got  into  the  railway  car- 
riage, Mabel  was  horrified  at  the  number  and 
variety  of  things,  they  had  with  them.  Hand- 
bags, holdalls  stuffed  to  bursting  with  rugs  and 
bedding,  hat-boxes,  umbrellas,  small  steamer 
trunks,  a  capacious  lunch  hamper,  a  large  earthen 
jug  of  drinking  water — all  piled  into  the  compart- 
ment in  which  they  were  to  ride.  There  were 
three  other  ladies  already  in  the  compartment, 
and  they,  severally  and  collectively,  had  a  like 
assortment  of  impedimenta.  Mabel's  protests 
were  vain.  The  trunks  and  bags  must  be  there  so 
they  could  get  at  their  clothing.  The  bedding  was 
indispensable  for  the  night.  Miss  Renwick  did 
not  like  the  bottled  mineral  water,  or  the  food 
served  at  the  stations.  Boiled  water  must  be 
carried  in  a  surahi  to  escape  cholera  from  im- 
pure water  along  the  way.  Food  must  be  taken 
in  the  tiffin  basket  to  save  the  expense  and  in- 
convenience of  eating  at  the  railway  restaurants. 
Mabel  felt  less  ashamed,  but  more  crowded,  when 
she  found  that  everybody  traveled  so. 

In  their  second-class  carriage  there  was  room 
for  the  five  ladies  to  make  up  their  beds,  and  sleep 
with  fair  comfort.  Three  long,  narrow  seats  ran 
lengthwise  of  the  compartment.  Above  the  bench 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  189 

On  each  side,  was  a  shelf  to  let  down  at  night 
to  form  the  two  upper  berths.  Everything  was 
stowed  away  as  compactly  as  possible,  and  the 
journey  begun  with  what  cheer  the  travelers 
could  command. 

Mabel  had  determined  not  to  go  to  Calcutta. 
She  had  heard  nothing  to  the  contrary,  and  sup- 
posed Eadha  would  be  there.  Miss  Renwick  was 
going  to  visit  friends  at  several  stations,  before 
proceeding  to  her  work.  The  girl  would  go  with 
her.  The  elder  lady  had  been  told  little  about 
her  companion's  affairs.  But  Mabel  had  let  her 
know  that  Mr.  Stanton  had  been  called  home,  and 
that  she  intended  to  stay  at  some  up-country 
station  as  a  helper.  Something  in  the  younger 
woman's  manner  had  checked  the  curious  ques- 
tions of  the  other.  And  thus  it  happened  that, 
all  unconscious  of  what  awaited  her,  Mabel  ar- 
rived early  one  hot  morning  at  Mungalpore. 


190  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


CHAPTER  XI 

UNTO    THE   HILLS 

RADHA  had  remained  at  Mungalpore,  under  the 
care  of  Esther  Emmett.  Her  frantic  ravings  had 
gradually  ceased,  to  be  followed  by  a  gentle  lun- 
acy. At  first  she  had  continued  very  weak.  But 
as  she  passed  altogether  from  under  the  influence 
of  the  frenzy  that  had  wrought  upon  her,  she 
gained  somewhat  in  strength. 

For  a  time  she  was  melancholy  and  tearful. 
Even  that,  however,  had  left  her.  A  spirit  of 
gentleness  and  quietness  seemed  to  enfold  her. 
Her  sensitiveness  to  all  things  beautiful,  whether 
in  sight  or  sound,  became  most  marked.  Her 
consideration  for  all  about  her,  and  her  apprecia- 
tion of  every  kindness,  were  singularly  pathetic. 

All  that  was  dark  in  the  girl's  past  had  totally 
faded  from  her  memory.  There  was  no  knowl- 
edge of  Stanton's  desertion  of  her,  nor  of  what 
she  had  heard  of  his  approaching  marriage  to 


•Radha  gathered  flowers.' 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  191 

another.  She  had  not  been  told  that  the  young 
man  had  gone  to  America,  nor  could  she  have 
comprehended  it.  What  remained  to  her  of  her 
past  life  was  the  picture  of  that  glorious  day  at 
the  Botanical  Garden,  and  the  recollection  of 
Stanton's  parting  promise  not  to  forget  the  Gand- 
harva  rite  which  had  bound  them  together.  With 
little  realization  of  the  flight  of  time,  she  mani- 
fested no  desire  to  return  to  Calcutta.  She  was 
waiting  for  Stanton  to  come  for  her;  then  they 
wrere  to  live  happily  together  always  in  the  old 
home. 

Every  day  she  gathered  flowers  or  leaves  to 
weave  a  garland  to  hang  about  her  lover's  neck 
when  he  should  come.  They  withered  over  night, 
and  the  memory  of  having  made  them  faded  from 
her  mind.  So  the  days  were  passed  in  bright 
dreams  of  past  and  future.  But  to  Esther  Em- 
mett,  who  long  had  loved  the  child,  her  pretty 
chattering  and  her  roseate  hopes  were  almost 
harder  to  bear  than  her  madness  had  been. 

No  one  ventured  to  speak  to  Mabel  of  Radha 
upon  the  day  of  her  arrival.  The  day  was  hot, 
and  the  stranger  was  glad  to  keep  quietly  in  the 
bungalow.  Esther  and  Radha  had  not  been  com- 
ing over  for  their  meals  since  the  latter's  illness. 
So  the  day  passed,  and  Mabel  went  early  to  bed. 
At  dawn  she  arose  and  slipped  out  into  the  com- 


IQ2  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

pound.  There  was  some  freshness  in  the  air,  and 
it  was  pleasant  among  the  flowers  that  careful 
watering  was  keeping  alive  there.  As  she  wan- 
dered about  she  suddenly  heard  a  light  step  be- 
hind her,  and  turned  to  see  approaching  a  slight 
little  figure  gracefully  draped  in  a  pretty  sari. 

"  Oh,  how  beautiful !"  she  involuntarily  ex- 
claimed under  her  breath,  as  she  saw  the  dark, 
oval  face,  with  its  great  eyes  glancing  smilingly 
at  her. 

"  You  see  I  have  come  for  my  flowers  early  to- 
day," the  girl  called  out  to  Mabel. 

The  unceremonious  greeting  surprised  Mabel 
somewhat.  She  thought  it  might  be  the  way  of 
the  country,  though. 

Without  more  words  the  slim,  girlish  figure 
began  to  move  about  the  garden.  Gathering  blos- 
soms here  and  there,  and  often  stopping  to  hover 
like  a  humming-bird  over  some  fragrant  flower, 
the  little  stranger  made  a  picture  that  Mabel  was 
glad  to  watch.  It  was  not  long  until  the  flower- 
gatherer  had  quite  a  heap  of  leaves  and  blossoms 
in  the  fold  of  her  sari.  Then  she  came  over  where 
the  other  girl  was  standing  and  demurely  sat 
down  at  her  feet. 

"  I  want  to  weave  my  garland  quickly,  for  he 
may  come  soon."  The  dark  fingers  were  moving 
swiftly,  as  the  girl  smiled  up  at  her  companion. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  193 

"  And  who  is  hef  "  The  words  slipped  out  be- 
fore Mabel  was  really  conscious  of  it. 

"  My  lover,  whom  I  wedded  one  day  among  the 
flowers.  He  is  coming  soon  to  take  me  to  my 
home,"  she  said  simply,  naively. 

"  Will  you  tell  me  your  name?  "  the  older  girl 
questioned. 

"  Oh,  don't  you  know  me?  "  asked  the  garland 
weaver  as  she  looked  up  in  gentle  surprise.  "  I 
am  Radha  Mukerji." 

She  had  turned  again  to  her  work  and  did  not 
see  the  painful  flush  that  spread  over  the  other's 
face.  Intent  upon  her  task,  she  was  softly  sing- 
ing to  herself. 

And  so  they  two  were  face  to  face.  The  sur- 
prise of  the  meeting  was  so  great  to  Mabel  that 
she  could  not  speak  or  think  for  some  minutes. 
She  had  never  heard  that  Radha  had  gone  to 
Mungalpore,  and  had  no  idea  of  meeting  her. 
Then  she  had  thought  Radha  was  crazy  and  dy- 
ing. This  little  woman  seemed  neither.  On  the 
contrary  she  looked  well,  though  frail,  and  was 
certainly  happy.  Had  the  girl  so  soon  recovered 
in  mind  and  body  and  heart?  Had  she  wed  some 
dusky  lover  of  her  own  people  who  was  coming 
for  her  that  day? 

Radha  had  paused  in  her  work  and  was  looking 
at  her  with  a  puzzled  expression. 


194  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  If  you  do  not  know  me,"  she  said,  "  then 
you  must  be  newly  come  here.  What  is  your 
name?  " 

Mabel  hesitated,  but  Radha  was  watching  her 
and  waiting  for  an  exchange  of  courtesies. 
>  "  I  am  just  arrived  from  America,"  she  replied, 
beginning  to  feel  her  way  cautiously  along,  while 
watching  her  questioner.  "  I  am  a  Kentuckian — 
from  Lexington,  Kentucky." 

There  was  no  sign  of  any  recognition  on  the 
part  of  the  other.  Radha  was  quietly  waiting  to 
hear  the  name. 

"  My  name  is  Everest,"  she  continued,  "  Mabel 
Everest." 

"  A  pretty  name,"  said  Radha,  and  she  looked 
long  into  the  tall  girl's  face.  "  I  like  your  name, 
and  I  think  you  are  very  beautiful.  May  we  not 
love  each  other?  "  she  asked,  at  length. 

"  I, — I  hope  so,"  Mabel  said  rather  hesitatingly. 

It  was  not  easy  to  do,  but  she  simply  must  ask 
another  question. 

"  May  I  ask  what  is  the  name  of  the  lover  who 
is  to  wear  the  garland?"  She  was  trying  to 
speak  naturally  and  indifferently.  But  her  voice 
became  almost  a  trembling  whisper,  and  she  had 
to  turn  half  away. 

"  Oh,  it  is  Mr.  Stanton,"  the  other  replied, 
readily,  "  Mr.  Frank  Stanton,  though  he  told  me 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  195 

long  ago  when  he  used  to  call  me  '  little  sister/ 
that  I  must  call  him  Frank." 

With  that  she  dropped  the  half  made  garland 
across  her  lap,  and  clasping  her  hands  about  her 
knees,  began  to  prattle  of  her  lover.  It  was  al- 
most all  about  the  day  in  the  Garden,  the  nup- 
tials by  exchange  of  garlands,  and  his  promise 
never  to  forget. 

As  Mabel  listened,  it  dawned  upon  her  what  it 
all  meant.  This  darkly  beautiful  little  stranger, 
sitting  among  the  flowers  and  so  happily  talking, 
was  but  the  shattered  fragment  of  her  former  self. 
With  that,  a  great  pity  came  upon  her,  and  she 
stooped  down  and  kissed  the  upturned  face. 

"  You  are  beautiful,  too,"  she  said,  "  and  we 
surely  must  love  each  other." 

They  were  sitting  side  by  side,  quietly  talking, 
when  Esther  Emmett  came  hastily  into  the  com- 
pound, looking  anxiously  for  her  charge. 

Mabel  arose  with  some  embarrassment,  for  she 
saw  that  the  other  young  woman  evidently 
divined  who  she  was,  and  was  greatly  confused. 
But  she  recovered  herself  instantly,  and  spoke 
with  a  quiet  dignity  that  set  the  other  at  ease, 
and  showed  there  was  nothing  either  to  conceal 
or  to  explain. 

"  I  am  Miss  Everest,  and  you  must  be  Dr. 
Emmett,  as  I  have  seen  everybody  else  here. 


196  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

You  see  that  little  Radha  and  I  have  been  making 
friends  over  the  flowers,  and  having  an  early 
morning  chat." 

"  I  am  so  glad  to  meet  you,"  the  Doctor  said,  as 
they  shook  hands.  "  And  I  am  glad  to  find 
Kadha  in  such  good  keeping.  It  gave  me  such 
a  fright  when  I  found  she  had  slipped  out 
alone." 

What  all  the  ladies  in  the  station  had  dreaded, 
had  thus  come  about  of  itself. 

"  Girls,"  said  Esther  when  talking  about  it  to 
Miss  Hammond  and  Jennie  Pierce,  "  if  ever  there 
was  a  born  queen,  Mabel  Everest  is  one.  You 
can't  imagine  how  beautifully  she  came  through 
that  scene.  I  could  not  have  said  a  thing,  but 
she  was  as  self-possessed  as  anything  imagin- 
able." 

From  that  day  Mabel  and  Kadha  were  fast 
friends.  The  former  talked  of  her  and  planned 
for  her  with  the  others.  But  no  one  ever  ventured 
to  intrude  upon  Mabel's  sorrow,  or  speak  a  word 
of  the  man  she  loved. 

When  Miss  Renwick  left  Mungalpore  Mabel 
decided  to  remain  there.  She  was  not  venturing 
to  look  very  far  into  the  future  those  days.  But 
she  was  resolved  to  be  useful  somewhere  while  in 
India.  In  fact,  she  had  a  feeling  that  anything 
she  might  do  to  help  the  people  would  in  some 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  197 

measure  atone  for  the  wrong  her  lover  had  done 
to  a  daughter  of  the  land.  That  she  had  lost 
him  did  not  lessen  her  love  for  him.  Knowing 
how  great  must  be  the  man's  anguish  over  the 
ruin  of  his  life,  the  loss  of  his  mother,  and  his 
separation  from  her,  there  was  in  her  heart  a 
tender  yearning  for  him.  Perhaps  any  toil  and 
pain  she  might  undergo  would  have  a  vicarious 
element  in  it,  to  work  to  his  good  in  time  or  in 
eternity. 

Her  leaving  home  had  been  under  the  impulse 
of  the  blank  and  pain  that  had  fallen  across  her 
life.  At  times,  on  the  voyage,  she  had  repented 
of  the  hasty  step.  Since  meeting  Radha,  she  was 
glad  she  had  come.  Never,  while  the  girl  lived, 
could  she  think  of  marrying  Frank.  To  her  mind, 
his  union  with  the  Bengali  girl  was  as  real  as 
though  it  had  been  ratified  by  the  modern,  in- 
stead of  only  by  the  ancient  laws  of  the  land. 
She  would  stay  and  tenderly  care  for  the  hapless 
girl.  She  would  also  do  what  she  could  for  the 
girl's  country.  Mungalpore  afforded  the  best  op- 
portunity for  the  former,  a  good  chance  for  the 
latter,  and  pleasant  companions  besides.  There 
she  would  remain. 

The  ladies  at  the  station  said  it  was  beginning 
to  get  hot.  Mabel  thought  there  was  a  little  mis- 
take in  the  tense,  for  the  thermometer  was  daily^ 


198  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

registering  one  hundred  and  six  degrees  in  the 
shade.  As  they  all  said  it  would  keep  getting  hot- 
ter and  hotter  throughout  May  and  June,  she 
could  see  the  propriety  of  using  mild  terms  for 
the  last  of  April.  Miss  Best  had  been  in  the 
mountains  for  some  time  on  her  vacation,  and 
Miss  Hammond  had  recently  gone.  Miss  Pierce 
and  Dr.  Emmett  were  to  take  their  turn  later. 
The  Doctor  always  preferred  to  go  away  during 
the  rains;  she  said  she  could  stand  baking  bet- 
ter than  boiling. 

But  it  began  to  grow  apparent  that  Esther's 
movements  for  that  season  would  have  to  be 
governed  by  the  needs  of  her  special  patient. 
Radha  was  visibly  languishing.  Her  vital  forces 
seemed  to  lessen  in  proportion  to  her  mental 
weakness.  After  calling  in  an  experienced  civil 
surgeon  from  the  nearest  city  for  consultation,  it 
was  decided  to  try  what  the  radical  change  to  a 
high  altitude  would  do  for  the  sufferer.  Mabel 
had  borne  the  heat  very  well,  but  it  would  have 
been  unwise  and  useless  for  her  to  remain  on 
the  plains  during  the  summer.  She  would  go 
with  Esther  and  Radha,  and  spend  her  time 
studying  Hindi,  and  helping  the  sick  girl. 

Equipped  with  all  the  luggage  necessary  for  a 
long  journey,  and  the  clothing  and  bedding  re- 
quired for  an  indefinite  sojourn  in  the  mountains, 
they  started  late  one  afternoon.  They  were  for- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  199 

tunate  enough  to  have  a  compartment  to  them- 
selves. Before  daylight  next  morning  they  had 
reached  Kutni,  and  so  completed  the  first  stage 
of  their  journey.  It  was  hours  before  they  could 
get  a  mail  train  for  Allahabad,  so  they  went  to 
the  Dak  Bungalow  for  rest  and  food.  The 
house,  built  by  the  government  for  travelers,  af- 
forded them  comfortable  rooms,  and  such  meals 
as  they  cared  to  order  from  the  man  in  charge,  at 
reasonable  prices. 

Evening  found  them  on  the  road  once  more, 
much  refreshed  by  a  good  day's  rest.  When  they 
arrived  in  Allahabad,  however,  Kadha  was  very 
tired  and  weak  from  a  night  of  broken  rest  in  a 
crowded  carriage.  Heat,  loss  of  sleep,  and  the 
ceaseless  jolting  over  the  rails  had  hurt  her  head 
cruelly. 

It  was  necessary  to  remain  in  the  city  two 
days,  before  the  girl  was  sufficiently  recovered  to 
go  on.  From  there  they  traveled  first-class  to 
avoid  the  risk  of  being  crowded.  By  breaking 
journey  at  Cawnpore  for  a  few  hours,  and  at 
Lucknow  for  two  days,  they  reached  Saharampur 
at  last,  after  having  traveled  and  rested  by  turns, 
for  over  a  week.  There  they  made  a  further  pause 
before  setting  out  by  dak  ghari  or  stage,  for  the 
wearisome  forty  miles  that  lay  between  them  and 


200  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

the  foot  of  the  mountains.  It  had  been  an 
anxious  eight  hundred  miles  journey. 

That  toilsome  way  between  Saharampur  and 
Rajpur!  Who  that  traveled  it  in  former  years 
has  ever  forgotten  it.  The  jolting  gharis  or  ton- 
gas, the  shouting  drivers,  the  wretched  horses,  the 
rough  road,  the  break-downs, — they  all  linger  in 
memory.  If  the  travelers  were  not  wasted  by 
disease  and  worn  out  by  the  railway  journey, 
that  last  stretch  of  road  saw  to  it  that  they  were 
reduced  to  such  a  state  as  to  need  the  invigorat- 
ing air  found  in  the  hills  beyond.  If,  as  was  too 
often  the  case,  they  had  not  left  their  work  until 
almost  too  weak  to  travel,  they  began  the  last 
stage  of  the  route  completely  exhausted,  and 
ended  it  well-nigh  dead.  It  is  better  now.  A 
branch  railway  has  been  run  from  Laksar  to 
Dehra  Dun.  Arriving  there  in  the  early  morning, 
a  tonga  ride  of  seven  miles  carries  the  traveler 
into  Rajpur.  After  a  good  breakfast  there,  he 
mounts  a  horse,  or  takes  a  seat  in  a  dandy  that  is 
to  be  carried  by  four  men,  and  so  goes  on  to 
Mussooree  or  Landour.  In  fact,  if  he  is  so  dis- 
posed, he  may  even  make  the  run  from  Dehra  to 
Rajpur  in  an  automobile,  so  far  has  civilization 
pushed  its  advance  guard  into  the  Orient. 

It  was  better  then  than  it  used  to  be.  There 
was  a  time  when  soldier  and  civilian,  missionary 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  201 

and  merchant,  and  the  families  of  them  all,  knew 
naught  of  fleeing  into  the  mountains  before  heat 
and  disease.  They  lived  or  died  as  best  they 
could  on  the  plains.  The  cemeteries  would  seem 
to  indicate  that  most  of  them  did  the  latter,  es- 
pecially the  women  and  children.  Later,  it  was  a 
journey  of  six  weeks  or  more  up  the  rivers  be- 
neath the  blazing  sun,  or  along  the  scorching 
highways.  It  is  not  strange  that  many  lay  down 
by  the  way,  at  one  town  or  another,  to  die.  How 
many  stricken  ones  set  out  upon  that  long  pil- 
grimage to  seek  the  favor  of  the  spirit  of  health, 
dwelling  in  the  mountains.  With  what  anxious 
care  and  prayers  did  parents  watch  over  their 
sick  little  ones,  being  worn  away  before  their 
very  eyes  by  the  hardships  of  the  way.  And  so 
watched  and  wept  and  prayed  husbands  or  wives 
as  their .  beloved  fled  with  them  over  India's 
burning  sands,  lifting  up  their  eyes  unto  the  hills 
for  help,  and  seeking  the  shadow  of  a  great  rock 
in  a  weary  land. 

It  had  been  an  anxious  journey  for  Esther 
and  Mabel.  They  dared  not  delay  too  long  in 
the  heat,  nor  were  they  able  to  hurry  Radha  for- 
ward beyond  her  powers  of  endurance.  She  was 
weak  and  wan  when  they  came  to  the  end  of  the 
railway,  and  faced  the  difficulties  of  the  road  be- 
fore them.  The  heat  was  intense  day  and  night, 


202  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

despite  all  the  relief  they  could  get  from  ice  and 
waving  punkahs. 

"  I  am  so  tired,  my  sister,"  Radha  had  been 
saying  for  weary  miles.  "  The  noise  of  the  train 
is  in  my  head,  and  I  would  like  to  lie  down  and 
rest." 

But  the  Doctor  knew  the  only  hope  was  in  get- 
ting her  up  to  the  cool  heights  beyond.  It  was  a 
race  with  death.  The  two  young  women  did  what 
they  could  to  make  the  girl  comfortable,  and  re- 
vive her  strength.  The  pursuing  foe  had  so  many 
allies  along  the  way  to  aid  him.  Every  night 
showed  plainly  that  he  had  gained  on  them  all 
day.  Mabel  got  to  thinking  that  the  constant 
click,  click  of  the  wheels  over  the  rails  was  but 
the  remorseless  beat  of  death's  feet  upon  the 
track  of  their  little  patient.  Would  they  be  able 
to  push  on  beyond  the  railroad? 

They  rested  all  day.  Keeping  the  punkahs 
swinging  vigorously  and  cloths  wet  with  ice- 
water  upon  her  head,  they  managed  to  get  Eadha 
comfortably  asleep.  In  the  evening  the  Doctor 
administered  the  strongest  stimulants  she  dared 
use.  She  enlisted  Radha's  will-power  in  the 
fight  by  telling  her  of  the  beauties  of  the  place 
they  were  soon  to  reach,  of  its  pleasant  resting- 
places,  and,  withal,  of  the  wonderful  flowers  she 
.would  find  there  for  garlands.  When  they  set  out 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  203 

to  make  the  trip  in  the  cool  of  the  night,  the  girl 
seemed  stronger  than  for  some  days. 

By  morning  they  were  in  Dehra.  In  the  light 
of  dawn  they  drove  along  the  wide,  smooth  road 
to  Rajpur.  The  sight  of  its  overarching  trees, 
the  hedges  of  roses  along  the  way,  and  the  beauti- 
ful houses  back  of  them,  again  revived  Radha's 
spirits  that  had  been  drooping  sadly  for  hours. 
With  tears  of  joy  in  their  eyes  and  prayers  of 
thanksgiving  in  their  hearts,  the  two  women 
conveyed  their  charge  into  the  hotel  at  Rajpur. 
There  they  might  rest  indeed.  They  were  more 
than  three  thousand  feet  above  the  sea.  The 
place  was  cool  that  early  in  the  summer,  and  it 
was  quiet.  Besides,  the  great  mountains  rose 
right  before  them,  and  seven  miles  away,  whither 
their  patient  might  be  comfortably  carried  in 
a  dandy,  was  their  destination.  They  would  stay 
where  they  were  until  Radha  was  rested,  or  until 
a  change  for  the  worse  made  necessary  a  speedy 
departure  for  the  remaining  few  hours  of  their 
ascent.  The  rest  was  sweet  to  them  all. 

Three  days  made  so  marked  an  improvement 
in  the  patient  that  the  Doctor  began  to  have  high 
hopes  of  better  things  beyond.  When  they  set 
out  for  the  climb,  Mabel  and  Esther  went  upon 
horses.  Radha  was  propped  up  with  cushions  in 
a  dandy.  Swinging  by  leather  straps  on  two 


204  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

poles  upon  the  shoulders  of  four  men,  the  boat- 
shaped  dandy,  with  its  armed  seat  and  its  place 
for  the  feet  to  rest,  made  an  easier  means  of  con- 
veyance than  any  the  girl  had  hitherto  tried. 
Up  and  up,  they  went  along  the  winding,  climb- 
ing road.  The  bearers  of  the  dandy  swung  along 
at  a  good  pace.  The  horses,  each  with  a  boy 
clinging  to  its  tail,  who  would  ride  them  down 
the  hill,  were  kept  behind  or  beside  the  dandy. 

The  scent  of  the  hills  was  in  their  nostrils,  the 
pure  air  was  in  their  lungs,  the  beauty  of  the  out- 
look rejoiced  their  eyes. 

"  See  those  great  cacti !"  cried  Esther.  "  Look 
at  their  stiff  branches.  Don't  they  remind  you 
for  all  the  world  of  those  wretched  pictures  of 
the  '  seven  golden  candlesticks  '?  " 

They  passed  through  a  zone  where  a  heavy 
shower  had  just  fallen.  It  was  steaming  in  the 
hot  sunlight. 

"  It  is  the  warm  fragrance  of  a  hothouse  of 
flowers,"  said  Mabel,  breathing  deeply. 

Although  it  was  a  little  late  for  them,  a  group 
of  rhododendron  trees  was  discovered  aflame  with 
the  scarlet  glories  of  their  blossoms.  Kadha 
made  the  men  set  down  the  dandy  while  she 
looked  at  the  beautiful  sight. 

"  This  makes  me  think  of  the  Book,"  she  said 
reverently,  "  We  are  upon  holy  ground,  for  this 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  205 

is  the  bush  ablaze  with  the  glory  of  God,  burning 
but  not  consumed." 

Hopeful  of  rich  stores  of  backsheesh  at  the  top 
of  the  hill,  some  of  the  men  broke  great  branches 
off  the  trees,  and  heaped  them  before  the  girl 
in  the  dandy.  She  was  happy  with  the  bright 
flowers  and  rich  green  leaves  for  the  rest  of  the 
journey. 

At  length,  after  they  had  passed  Mussooree, 
and  wound  their  steep  way  to  Landour,  lying  be- 
yond, they  turned  off  the  main  road.  Suddenly 
they  came  upon  a  low,  thatched  cottage.  Over  its 
white  walls  honeysuckle  and  roses  were  clamber- 
ing. About  it  hung  an  atmosphere  of  peace.  By 
the  side  of  its  door  a  placard  bore  the  words 
"  Rest  Cottage."  The  weary  travelers  entered 
in. 


206  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


CHAPTER  XII 

AMONG   THE   HEIGHTS 

BEAUTIFUL  for  situation  is  Landour.  Of  all 
the  hill  stations,  north  and  south,  in  India,  it 
is  queen.  Darjiling  has  distinction  from  its 
proximity  to  Kinchinjunga  and  Mt.  Everest, 
loftiest  of  the  world's  mountain  peaks.  Simla 
is  gay  with  all  the  festivities  that  befit  the  sum- 
mer capital  of  the  empire,  and  the  presence  of 
the  Viceroy.  But  for  peacefulness  and  restful- 
ness,  for  variety  and  sublimity  of  scenery,  Mus- 
sooree,  and  especially  its  loftier  neighbor,  Lan- 
dour, cannot  be  equaled. 

Mussooree  is  a  considerable  station  with  its 
hotels,  and  club  house,  and  boarding-houses,  and 
smart  English  shops.  At  the  height  of  the  season 
it  is  crowded  with  visitors.  With  picnics,  and 
tramps  to  Happy  Valley,  or  Tivoli  Gardens,  or 
some  one  of  the  many  attractive  waterfalls  about, 
together  with  the  delights  of  shopping,  the  days 
are  passed.  At  night  there  are  various  feasts 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  207 

and  parties  and  dances.  The  neighboring  settle- 
ment, sedately  perched  above  it  on  the  hills,  never 
indulges  in  anything  more  worldly  than  after- 
noon teas  and  Sunday-school  picnics.  Hence, 
Landour  is  called  '  Saint's  Rest,'  while  Mus- 
sooree  is  known  as  l  Sinner's  Paradise.'  But 
the  saintliness  of  the  one,  and  the  sinfulness  of 
the  other  are  of  a  mild  type,  nor  is  there  any  im- 
passable gulf  fixed  between  them.  Landour  is  but 
a  mile  distant  from  its  more  metropolitan  neigh- 
bor. That  mile  stands  on  end  most  of  the  way, 
however,  and  lifts  the  station  to  the  noble  alti- 
tude of  nearly  eight  thousand  feet. 

Landour  was  opened  up  and  developed  by  the 
Government  in  1827  as  a  health  resort  for  British 
soldiers  in  India.  Every  summer,  companies  of 
sickly-looking  troops  are  sent  up  to  its  barracks 
and  hospitals.  When  sufficiently  recruited  they 
are  sent  away  to  make  room  for  others.  With 
little  to  do,  with  scant  opportunity  for  highly 
spiced  pleasures,  with  meager  appreciation  of  the 
peaceful  beauties  of  nature,  the  average  Tommy 
Atkins  is  more  rejoiced  at  the  time  of  his  de- 
parture, than  on  the  day  of  his  arrival  at  Lan- 
dour. Yet,  like  other  things  in  this  world,  not 
pleasant  but  grievous  for  the  time  being,  a  so- 
journ in  the  pure  air  of  the  hills  is  a  good  thing 
for  Tommy. 


2o8  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Aside  from  the  soldiers  and  a  few  families 
who  are  lovers  of  quiet,  most  of  the  sojourners 
at  Landour  are  missionaries,  and  the  good  people 
who  keep  the  houses  where  they  board.  English, 
Scotch,  Welsh,  Irish,  Australian,  Canadian  and 
American  missionaries,  with  occasionally  a  few 
from  Germany  or  Scandinavia,  they  make  a 
numerous  company.  Various  denominations  are 
represented,  but  the  peace  that  from  of  old  has 
crowned  the  summit  of  those  hills  is  never  broken 
by  discordant  jangling  of  divergent  creeds.  A 
wholesome,  human  lot  of  people  they  are,  for  the 
most  part,  with  a  healthful  interest  in  all  the 
affairs  of  the  present  world.  They  find  quiet 
abodes  in  the  cottages  nestling  about  the  hill- 
sides. Seeking  rest,  delighted  at  the  chance  to 
spend  quiet  hours  with  their  books,  rejoicing  in 
abundance  of  human  fellowship,  keenly  appre- 
ciative of  the  glories  of  the  scenery  about  them, 
they  love  Landour  with  all  their  hearts. 

Three  broad,  level  roads  circle  the  breasts  of 
three  noble  peaks.  Running  up  to  the  crests,  or 
winding  down  the  sides  of  those  hills  are  numer- 
ous by-paths.  They  lead  to  barracks  and  hos- 
pital, and  to  the  many  white  cottages  that  make 
up  the  settlement.  From  one  side  of  every  one  of 
the  three  mountains  girt  with  their  roads,  may  be 
seen  a  view  of  the  wonderful  Dun,  stretching 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  209 

away  mile  on  mile,  a  magnificent  and  varied 
panorama.  Beyond  its  broad  expanse  lie  the 
Siwalik  Hills,  running  parallel  with  the  Hima- 
layas. From  the  heights  they  seem  scarcely  more 
than  molehills,  but  they  are  a  mountain  range, 
heavily  timbered,  and  abounding  in  game,  large 
and  small.  In  ages  long  past,  before  mankind 
had  appeared  upon  the  globe,  mighty  monsters 
roamed  those  hills.  In  late  times  their  skeletons 
have  been  unearthed  there — vast  mastodons,  rhi- 
noceros, hippopotami,  camels,  giraffs.  They  have 
long  since  perished  from  the  earth,  or  are  found 
represented  in  inferior  species.  But  the  lordly 
elephant  continues  to  haunt  the  forests.  Tales 
are  told  of  how  they  used  to  come  out  upon  the 
track  to  the  peril  of  trains  when  the  railroad 
first  invaded  that  region;  and  how,  in  lighter 
vein,  they  used  to  pull  up  the  telegraph  poles  for 
pastime. 

Far  away  across  the  Dun  and  over  the  Si- 
waliks,  are  the  plains  of  India.  Threading  its 
way  across  the  stretch  of  level  country  to  the 
west,  is  seen  the  Jumna  River.  To  the  southeast, 
flows  the  Ganges.  Rising  in  the  snowy  ranges 
back  of  Landour,  those  mighty  rivers  break  forth 
from  the  hills  and  flow  down  to  make  glad  the 
land.  Though  they  have  their  sources  in  neigh- 
boring peaks,  they  flow  away  in  opposite  direc- 


210  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

tions.  From  Landour  they  are  seen  as  silvery 
ribbons  winding  away,  farther  and  farther  apart. 
But  after  their  unsisterly  parting  and  wide  wan- 
dering, they  meet  and  mingle  their  mighty  cur- 
rents in  happy  union  by  the  city  of  Allahabad, 
thence  to  flow  on  for  many  leagues  to  the  sea. 

From  the  other  side  of  the  hills,  looking  out 
to  the  northeast,  are  seen  the  eternal  snows.  Un- 
trodden by  the  foot  of  man  or  beast,  thrust  by 
the  uplifted  fingers  of  the  mountains  against  the 
sky,  they  lie  in  spotless  whiteness.  '  The 
Snows! '  Beautiful  always,  whether  cold  in  the 
gray  light  of  a  cloudy  day;  or  brilliant  in  the 
splendor  of  the  sun  at  meridian,  or  blushing  rosy- 
red  beneath  the  kisses  of  the  sunset,  or  sleeping 
under  the  sheen  of  the  full-moon's  silvery  efful- 
gence. Across  the  lower  summits  and  vales,  all 
clad  in  living  green,  the  snow-mantled  monarchs 
of  the  Himalayas  rise  peak  above  peak,  from 
glory  unto  glory,  until  they  are  lost  in  the  dis- 
tance far,  far  away. 

Such  is  Landour.  To  that  bit  of  Paradise, 
high  and  uplifted,  Radha  had  been  brought  in 
safety  by  her  two  friends.  The  cottage  that 
opened  its  hospitable  doors  to  receive  them  clung 
to  the  hillside,  looking  out  to  the  west.  From  its 
wide  veranda  could  be  seen  to  the  southward  all 
the  glories  of  the  Dun.  Westward,  majestic  hills 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  211 

stood  out  before  them.  The  house  was  the  sum- 
mer home  of  an  elderly  widow  and  her  daughter. 
Two  rooms,  with  bathroom  and  small  dressing- 
room  opening  off  one  of  them,  were  put  at  the  dis- 
posal of  the  three  young  women.  They  were  the 
only  guests. 

Radha  was  weary  enough  to  need  to  rest  as 
soon  as  tiffin  was  over.  The  various  trunks  and 
bags  and  bundles  of  the  party  had  arrived.  They 
had  been  brought  up  the  steep  road  tied  to  the 
backs  of  coolies.  It  took  but  a  few  moments  to 
get  out  enough  bedding  to  make  the  girl  com- 
fortable. Worn  by  her  journey,  but  soothed  by 
the  quiet,  and  refreshed  by  the  pure  cool  air,  she 
soon  fell  into  a  deep,  peaceful  sleep. 

The  other  ladies  busied  themselves  with  their 
luggage,  unpacking  and  putting  things  away.  It 
requires  a  considerable  equipment  for  a  sojourn 
in  the  hills.  That  region  is  no  exception  to  the 
general  rule  that  the  traveler  must  always  sup- 
ply bedding  in  India,  whether  boarding  or  visit- 
ing friends.  Pillows,  blankets,  sheets,  pillow- 
cases, must  always  be  carried.  In  some  sections 
of  the  country,  even  a  thin  mattress  must  be 
added  to  the  things  necessary.  Then,  the  warmth 
of  midday  in  the  hottest  months,  makes  thin 
clothing  enjoyable,  whilst  the  cool  evenings  and 
damp  days  of  rain  call  for  heavy  garments.  Thus 


212  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

the  three  ladies  had  a  formidable  array  of  posses- 
sions to  dispose  of.  But  while  their  patient 
slept,  Mabel  and  Esther  moved  swiftly  and 
quietly  about  until  they  had  arranged  everything 
in  the  room  to  their  satisfaction.  Before  tea-time 
they  were  comfortably  settled  and  ready  for  rest 
and  enjoyment. 

A  servant  soon  called  at  the  door  to  know 
whether  they  would  take  tea  in  their  rooms,  or 
with  their  hostess  and  her  daughter. 

"  Let  us  join  the  others,"  said  Esther,  "  Radha 
is  sleeping  soundly." 

In  the  pretty  drawing-room  they  found  the 
other  members  of  the  household  awaiting  them. 
The  dainty  tea-table  was  spread  with  wafers  and 
cake  and  tea.  Esther  Emmett  had  been  with 
good  Mrs.  Kyland  the  summer  before,  and  was 
thoroughly  at  home. 

"  I  don't  see  how  I  ever  used  to  live  through 
the  day  without  afternoon  tea,"  she  declared. 

"  The  Americans  certainly  don't  know  what 
they  miss  by  not  being  tea  drinkers,"  said  Mrs. 
Ryland. 

"  Besides  being  so  refreshing,"  added  her 
daughter,  "  tea  is  such  a  good  thing  to  draw 
people  together  and  break  up  formality." 

"  Someone  was  saying  last  year,  when  it  was 
remarked  that  all  Landour  comes  together  over 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  213 

the  teacups,  that  the  favorite  song  of  '  Saint's 
Rest '  should  be  *  Blest  be  the  tea  that  binds,' ' 
said  Esther,  laughingly. 

"  Oh,  Dr.  Emmett,"  Miss  Ryland  exclaimed 
after  a  moment,  "  you  must  see  our  new  curiosity. 
We  have  here  this  season  the  famous  Mr.  Lock- 
land,  and  all  the  ladies  are  wild  over  him." 

"  Where  is  he  from,  and  what  is  he  famous 
for?  "  asked  Esther. 

"  He  is  just  out  from  England  this  last  winter," 
answered  Miss  Ryland.  "  As  for  his  fame  that 
seems  due  to  some  meetings  he  has  held  at  home 
and  here  in  the  interests  of  some  kind  of  sancti- 
fication.  He  has  peculiar  views." 

"  What  is  he  like?  "  asked  Mabel. 

"  Oh,  he's  a  tall,  fair  Englishman,  who  dresses 
rather  elaborately,  and  has  very  pleasing  man- 
ners," was  the  reply. 

"  And  the  ladies  are  fond  of  him,  are  they?  " 
asked  Esther. 

"  Very,"  said  Miss  Ryland,  then  she  laughed. 

"  What  is  it?  "  enquired  Esther. 

"  Why,  it  is  such  fun  to  see  your  special  friend, 
Miss  Best,  with  him.  She  is  his  devoted  slave, 
though  she  must  be  twice  his  age." 

"  You  don't  mean  to  tell  me  Miss  Best  has 
noticed  a  man!"  cried  Esther  delightedly. 


214  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  Then  she  has  at  last  descended  to  earthly 
things." 

"  I  have  no  doubt  she  thinks  him  heavenly ; 
besides  she  is  always  talking  to  him  of  her  soul. 
I  think  she  has  made  him  her  father  confessor," 
said  Miss  Ryland. 

"What  do  the  men  think  of  Mr.  Lockland?" 
asked  Mabel. 

"  Most  of  them  say  he  is  affected,  and  '  soft ', 
Miss  Ryland  answered  with  some  reluctance. 
But  a  moment  later  she  added,  "  Do  you  know 
what  young  Lieutenant  Morebrook  said  of  him? 
He  said  that  if  a  big  caterpillar  could  stand  on 
its  tail  and  bow  and  smile  it  would  be  a  good 
picture  of  Mr.  Lockland." 

"  Good,  good !"  cried  the  other  girls. 

But  Mrs.  Kyland  asumed  a  tone  and  look  of 
reproof  and  said,  "  Annie." 

"  I  didn't  say  it,"  protested  her  daughter. 

"  I  wouldn't  repeat  such  things,"  declared  the 
mother,  bent  upon  maintaining  discipline. 

"  Well,"  said  Miss  Ryland  as  they  finished 
their  tea,  "  you  may  both  see  the  gentleman  for 
yourselves  tomorrow,  for  I  have  invited  a  few 
friends  here  for  the  afternoon." 

That  evening  Radha  and  her  two  friends  en- 
joyed the  luxury  of  chatting  together  before  a 
wood  fire.  It  was  cool  enough  to  make  it  neces- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  215 

sary  for  the  newcomers  from  the  plains.  The 
Bengali  girl  seemed  much  stronger  after  her  good 
rest,  and  was  able  to  go  out  to  the  dining-room 
for  dinner.  They  were  all  ready  to  retire  at 
an  early  hour,  however.  After  parching  in  the 
heat  below  and  trying  to  sleep  under  waving 
punkahs  it  was  delightful  to  undress  by  a  fire, 
and  sleep  under  blankets  once  more. 

They  were  up  betimes  in  the  morning,  and  out 
in  the  deliciously  cool  air.  Radha  was  not  capa- 
ble of  much  walking,  but  could  accompany  her 
friends  wherever  they  chose  to  tramp,  by  being 
carried  in  a  light  dandy  by  two  coolies.  They 
went  up  to  the  road,  determined  to  go  '  around 
the  big  chakkar,'  as  circling  the  hill  was  termed 
in  Anglo-Indian.  They  would  also  get  a  view  of 
the  snows,  if  no  mist  intervened.  Passing  around 
the  south  side  of  the  hill  they  feasted  their  eyes 
upon  the  Dun.  In  the  slant  light  of  the  rising 
sun  it  was  dappled  over  with  an  almost  infinite 
variety  of  green,  indicating  the  different  kinds 
of  trees  and  growing  crops.  At  intervals,  small 
streams  and  lakes  reflected  the  light.  From 
little  villages  and  hamlets,  smoke  was  rising  in 
graceful  columns  and  floating  away  on  the  gentle 
breeze.  Just  after  passing  the  English  Church 
the  ladies  stopped  beneath  a  wide-spreading  oak 
tree,  and  stood  silently  leaning  against  the  fence. 


216  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

At  their  feet  the  mountain  shot  down  precipi- 
tately. Among  the  trees  of  valleys  and  lesser 
hills  were  numerous  cottages.  The  peaceful 
scene,  stretching  far  away  before  their  eyes, 
called  a  reverent  hush  upon  their  spirits. 

Moving  on,  at  length,  up  the  gently  rising  road, 
they  came  to  its  highest  point.  There  the  road 
branches  off,  to  run  around  the  two  small  chak- 
kars,  on  the  one  hand,  and  to  continue  the  circuit 
of  the  big  hill,  on  the  other.  Upon  a  knoll  to  the 
right  stands  the  soldiers'  guardhouse  and  jail; 
up  the  road  to  the  left  is  the  large  stone  theater. 
The  theater  then  served  the  double  purpose  of  a 
place  of  amusement  for  the  soldiers  during  the 
week,  and  a  place  of  worship  on  Sundays  for  sol- 
diers and  others  who  were  not  members  of  the 
Church  of  England.  Since  then,  the  handsome 
Memorial  Church  that  stands  upon  a  spur  of  the 
hill  facing  the  guardhouse  has  been  built.  But 
just  between  the  two  hills,  the  road  passes  along 
where  the  mountain  shoots  down  many  feet,  al- 
most a  sheer  precipice.  From  the  edge  of  that 
sharp  declivity,  across  the  valley  and  a  wide 
stretch  of  intervening  mountains,  may  be  seen  the 
snowy  ranges  in  all  their  beauty.  There,  leaning 
on  the  strong  fence  that  the  Government  has  built 
everywhere  that  the  road  skirts  the  cliffs,  the 
three  young  women  looked  out  upon  the  unri- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  217 

valed  glories  of  the  spotless  hills.  To  Radha  and 
Mabel,  it  was  the  first  view  of  the  snows.  They 
both  uttered  little  exclamations  of  delight  as  the 
vision  broke  upon  them. 

"  It  is  the  city  of  the  New  Jerusalem  adorned 
as  a  bride  for  her  bridegroom,"  cried  Radha, 
thinking  of  a  passage  she  had  read  at  her  devo- 
tions that  morning. 

"  Yes,"  said  Mabel,  lt  I  can  almost  think  those 
two  loftiest  peaks  are  the  '  gates  of  pearl '  swung 
open  to  admit  to  the  celestial  city." 

When  they  continued  their  walk,  it  was  along 
the  road  around  the  big  hill  that  afforded  a  view 
of  the  snows  till  they  passed  the  cemetery.  Be- 
fore it,  Radha  called  to  her  coolies  to  halt.  The 
restful  beauty  of  that  peaceful  city  of  the  dead 
appealed  to  the  girl.  It  rises  terrace  above  ter- 
race to  the  top  of  the  mountain,  and  every  ter- 
race is  dotted  with  white  monuments,  embowered 
in  trees  and  flowers. 

"  Oh,  how  beautiful  to  sleep  there  among  the 
flowers  in  the  sight  of  the  snow  mountains,"  she 
murmured.  "  Surely  when  the  Lord  of  life  comes 
through  the  gates  of  pearl  to  awaken  all  who 
sleep,  He  will  come  here  first." 

Passing  on,  they  came  to  parts  of  the  road 
that  wound  in  and  out  among  trees  whose 
branches  interlaced  above  their  heads.  They 


218  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

found  the  wild  roses  in  bloom.  Some  of  the 
bushes  had  clambered  high  up  into  tall  trees. 
There  the  white  blossoms  crowned  the  heads  of 
the  supporting  trees  so  thickly  that  they  looked 
snow-covered.  Radha  could  not  be  content  until 
she  had  her  lap  full  of  the  flowers.  Then  dex- 
terously avoiding,  or  skillfully  breaking  off  the 
thorns,  she  wove  the  stems  together  into  wreaths 
and  garlands. 

At  last  they  completed  the  circuit  and  de- 
scended to  Rest  Cottage  in  time  for  a  bountiful 
breakfast.  It  had  been  a  morning  ramble  full  of 
delight  to  them  all,  and  a  foretaste  of  many  such 
mornings  and  evenings  to  follow. 

That  afternoon  brought  to  the  cottage  Mr. 
Lockland,  Miss  Best,  and  several  other  couples 
for  tea,  conversation  and  games.  Miss  Ryland 
pointed  out  Mr.  Lockland  as  he  came  swinging 
down  the  hillside.  He  was  a  well-built  young 
man  with  a  fine  color  in  his  cheeks,  and  he  was 
arrayed  in  a  light  gray  suit,  blue  striped  shirt, 
and  flaming  red  tie  and  socks. 

"Does  he  always  dress  so  strikingly?"  asked 
Mabel. 

"  Yes,  not  always  the  same  colors,  but  some 
combination  equally  as  noticeable,"  said  Miss 
Ryland. 

"  How  swell,"  exclaimed  Esther  in  a  shrill 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  219 

whisper.  Then  while  they  were  admonishing  her 
to  be  quiet,  lest  the  man  should  hear  her,  she 
quoted — •'  Oh,  the  several  colors1  he  wears,  where- 
in he  flourisheth  changeably  every  day.' 

Then  she  was  shaking  hands  with  Miss  Best, 
and  gravely  bowing  to  Mr.  Lockland  as  he  was 
presented.  The  other  friends  soon  arrived,  and 
in  a  few  minutes  they  were  all  happily  chatting 
and  drinking  tea.  Oddly  enough,  Mr.  Lockland 
seemed  drawn  toward  Esther  Emmett  from  the 
first.  Although  there  were  no  brighter  girls 
present,  there  were  certainly  some  who  were  pret- 
tier, and  more  anxious  to  please  the  young  man. 
He  took  a  seat  beside  Esther,  and  engaged  her 
in  conversation.  When  it  was  proposed  that  the 
company  repair  to  the  compound  for  tennis  and 
badminton,  he  kept  his  place  and  tried  to  hold 
Esther  to  the  discussion  of  some  serious  question 
he  had  raised. 

"  See  here,"  she  cried  at  length,  "  are  you  not 
going  out  to  play?  Let  us  join  the  others." 

"  Ah,  no,"  he  responded,  "  I  came  out  to  India 
for  the  spiritual  good  of  the  people  here.  Game 
playing  is  of  the  world." 

"  You  don't  mean  to  say  it  is  wrong  to  play 
badminton?"  she  asked  in  amazement. 

"  It  is  too  frivolous  an  occupation  for  those 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


who  have  been  separated  to  the  great  work  of 
the  Lord,"  he  replied  solemnly. 

"  But  the  Bible  says  '  bodily  exercise  is  profit- 
able/ urged  Esther. 

"  Only  that  it  may  contrast  it  with  the  god- 
liness which  is  truly  profitable." 

"  St.  Paul,  though,  constantly  draws  many  of 
his  stirring  illustrations  from  the  ancient  games," 
she  insisted. 

"  That  is  but  to  fix  our  minds  on  the  spiritual 
contest  which  must  occupy  all  our  time,"  the  man 
explained. 

"  Now,  Mr.  Lockland,"  said  the  girl  with  some 
impatience,  "  you  know  very  well  we  all  need 
recreation  and  exercise." 

"  Let  it  be  had  apart  from  worldly  pleasure 
then,"  said  Lockland,  dogmatically. 

"  Oh,  it's  the  pleasure  you  object  to,  is  it?  " 
Then  she  added,  "  That  reminds  me  of  what  has 
been  said  of  the  Puritans  —  they  opposed  bear- 
baiting,  not  because  it  hurt  the  bears,  but  because 
it  gave  pleasure  to  the  people." 

"  Our  pleasure  should  be  in  the  work  of  the 
Lord,"  he  rejoined. 

"  Tea-drinking,  chit-chat  with  the  ladies,  and 
gay  apparel,"  said  the  girl  maliciously,  letting 
her  eyes  rest  on  his  scarlet  cravat,  and  then  fall 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  221 

to  the  flaming  socks  that  protruded  below  his 
turned-up  trousers. 

"  Really,  Miss  Emmett,"  he  said,  flushing, 
"  these  things  are  spiritually  discerned,  and  I  do 
not  care  to  argue  with  you,  you  know.  I  shall 
surely  have  to  send  you  my  tract  on  '  The 
Separated  Missionary '." 

"If  you  do  I  shall  surely  not  read  it,"  said 
Esther,  laughing,  but  provoked  at  the  imputation 
of  carnality.  Thereupon  she  excused  herself  and 
went  out  to  enjoy  the  games  with  the  others. 

Young  Lockland  was  annoyed,  no  less  by  the 
unusual  experience  of  having  a  young  lady  choose 
tennis  to  his  company,  than  by  the  novel  ordeal 
of  having  his  position  ably  attacked.  Usually 
people  listened  to  his  cant  with  but  feeble  opposi- 
tion. They  did  not  find  it  convenient  to  practise 
what  he  preached.  But  their  sense  of  imperfec- 
tion in  their  own  lives  made  them  often  think  he 
was  perhaps  right.  Like  all  such  men,  he  thought 
argument  unwise  only  when  he  began  to  get  the 
worst  of  it.  He  was  succeeding  in  making  him- 
self Pharisaical,  and  some  others  unhappy  by 
proclaiming  an  unattainable  perfection.  But  his 
cant  was  in  the  mind  rather  than  merely  in  word. 
He  was  self-deceived  rather  than  a  hypocrite.  It 
made  it  more  difficult  to  convince  him  of  his 
error,  but  it  left  more  of  a  man  there  to  convince. 


222 


He  was  young  yet,  and  might  come  to  a  saner  and 
more  consistent  state  of  mind. 

Esther's  withdrawal  left  him  with  Mrs.  Ryland 
and  Miss  Best.  The  former  was  graciously  act- 
ing the  hostess  for  the  guests  within  the  house, 
whilst  her  daughter  looked  to  those  outside. 
Miss  Best  was  properly  shocked  at  the  way 
Esther  had  treated  the  saintly  youth.  She  drew 
near  to  comfort  him,  and  to  question  him  con- 
cerning some  of  her  own  deep  spiritual  ex- 
periences. Mrs.  Ryland  never  said  anything 
about  it,  but  her  eyes  twinkled  as  she  saw  Lock- 
land's  gaze  wander  from  the  face  of  the  woman 
who  was  laying  bare  her  soul  for  his  inspection, 
and  follow  with  admiration  the  graceful  move- 
ments and  brilliant  playing  of  the  '  carnally 
minded'  Esther.  When  the  guests  were  all 
leaving,  the  young  man  told  Esther  he  would 
be  very  pleased  to  call  upon  her  if  he  might. 

"  Do  call,"  she  said  graciously.  But  she  add- 
ed roguishly,  "  Don't  come  when  you  are  in  a 
very  spiritual  frame  of  mind,  for  then  you  would 
have  to  be  '  spiritually  discerned,'  and  there  is  no 
hope  that  I  could  see  you." 

He  came,  however,  as  often  as  he  dared.  Nor 
was  his  conversation  always  of  the  '  separated 
missionary.' 

It  was  some  weeks  later  that  he  came  upon  Dr. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  223 

Emmett  one  day  on  the  road  from  Mussooree. 
She  had  walked  down  in  the  morning  and  taken 
two  little  boys  with  her  from  a  neighboring  cot- 
tage. They  had  a  fine  time  together  in  the  shops 
and  bazars,  and  the  boys  had  been  bountifully 
treated  to  native  sweetmeats,  and  channa,  or 
parched  grain.  They  each  also  had  a  cheap 
French  harp.  As  they  were  going  back,  just 
when  they  began  the  stiff  climb  up  the  steepest 
part  of  the  way,  a  sudden  shower  poured  down. 
Esther  took  her  little  friends  under  the  shelter 
of  a  great  tree  where  they  sat  down  upon  some 
rocks. 

There  she  became  so  interested  in  playing  a 
French  harp  for  the  boys  that  she  was  unmindful 
of  the  rain  which  was  gradually  soaking  them 
all.  In  her  lap  were  heaped  the  sweets  and 
channa,  and  the  rain  was  making  a  sugary  solu- 
tion of  the  former.  Before  her  were  the  two  boys 
dancing  with  all  their  might,  while  she  executed 
a  lively  jig  upon  the  mouth  organ.  Near  by, 
squatted  a  group  of  admiring  coolies,  laughing 
and  shouting  "  Bahut  kushi  babalog!  Happy  chil- 
dren !"  Then  Esther  came  to  herself  and  saw  Mr. 
Lockland  looking  at  her.  He  was  panoplied  with 
mackintosh  and  umbrella,  and  looked  the  picture 
of  neatness. 

The  young  woman  would  have  been  less  human 


224  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

than  the  man  thought  he  was,  had  she  not  re- 
sented being  seen  in  such  a  predicament.  But 
she  laughed  and  told  the  children  they  must  all 
hurry  home  now  that  they  were  wet.  In  spite 
of  her  protests,  she  soon  found  herself  wrapped  in 
Lockland's  mackintosh,  the  children  trudging 
ahead  with  his  umbrella,  while  he  walked  beside 
her  with  the  rain  washing  red  streaks  from  his 
tie  down  his  shirt  front. 

Just  how  it  happened  will  never  be  known, 
but  somewhere  on  that  upward  march  the  young 
man  offered  Esther  Emmett  his  heart,  and  begged 
her  to  share  his  life.  The  surprise  was  so  great, 
her  sense  of  the  ludicrous  in  the  whole  situation 
so  keen,  and  her  chagrin  at  being  seen  in  so  ridi- 
culous a  plight  so  real,  that  the  girl  could  hardly 
take  the  offer  seriously  or  treat  her  wooer  with 
proper  consideration.  But  she  managed  to  refuse 
him  with  womanly  dignity  and  kindness. 

She  could  not  help  telling  Mabel  about  it  as 
she  sat  with  her  and  Radha  before  the  fire  listen- 
ing to  the  pelting  rain. 

"Could  you  not  love  him,  my  sister?"  asked 
Radha. 

Esther  declared  that  she  could  not.  Then  she 
talked  of  all  that  a  man  must  and  must  not  be  if 
she  was  ever  to  marry  him.  Certainly  her  ideal, 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  225 

as  thus  set  forth,  was  very  different  from  Mr. 
Lockland. 

'  Methinks  the  lady  doth  protest  too  much, ' 
Mabel  was  quoting  to  herself.  She  had  heard 
other  girls  talk.  She  would  wait  and  see. 

Radha  was  musing,  and  repeating  some  lines 
from  a  noted  writer  of  her  own  land,  '  She  whom 
I  love,  loves  another,  and  the  other  again  loves 
another,  while  another  is  pleased  with  me.  Ah, 
the  tricks  of  the  god  of  love ! ' 


226  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


CHAPTER  XIII 

A   SHADOWY   VALE   AND  BEYOND 

ABLE  to  be  much  out  of  doors,  and  interested  in 
the  flowers  and  scenery  about  her,  Kadha  had 
gained  strength  at  Landour.  Mentally,  her  im- 
provement was  less  marked.  She  was  interested 
in  more  things,  but  practically  nothing  of  her 
past  life  was  recalled,  and  her  thought  centered 
about  the  anticipated  return  of  her  lover.  All 
her  conversation  and  musings  took  their  hue  from 
that  hallucination.  It  was  pathetic,  but  it  was 
after  all  a  merciful  delusion.  Dr.  Emmett  was 
well  pleased  with  the  girl's  improvement.  She 
had  hopes  that  Eadha's  increased  strength  would 
carry  her  through  a  crisis  she  was  approaching, 
and  that  beyond  it  her  mental  derangement  would 
pass  off. 

Meanwhile  the  rains  had  begun.  They  were 
not  as  continuous  and  heavy  as  usual,  which  led 
to  some  apprehension  as  to  what  might  be  going 
on  down  on  the  plains.  But  the  mountains  had 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  227 

taken  on  a  richer  and  more  varied  beauty,  and 
the  glories  of  cloudland  and  sunset  were  wonder- 
fully enhanced.  On  all  the  hillsides  near  the  set- 
tlement, dahlias  had  sprung  up  in  bewildering 
profusion.  Abounding  in  almost  every  variety  of 
color  and  shade,  they  clothed  the  hill-slopes  with 
variegated  brilliancy. 

Rich  green  moss  was  spread  over  the  soil  and 
out-cropping  rocks.  Hiding  away  among  the 
trees  and  bushes  countless  daintily-tinted  orchids 
were  modestly  blooming.  Everywhere  there  were 
ferns  of  all  kinds.  They  came  out  of  the  crevices 
of  the  rocks,  they  grew  thickly  through  the  woods, 
they  sprang,  as  if  by  magic,  from  the  bark  of  all 
the  trees.  Nothing  more  uniquely  beautiful 
could  be  imagined  than  the  majestic  trees  with 
the  upper  side  of  every  bough  clothed  with 
delicately  fashioned  ferns,  while  from  the  under 
side  of  the  branches  hung  long  festoons  of  moss. 

'  The  murmuring  pines  and  the  hemlocks 
Bearded  with  moss  and  in  garments  green,  indistinct  in  the 

twilight, 

Stand  like  Druids  of  eld,  with  voices  sad  and  prophetic, 
Stand    like    harpers  hoar,  with  beards  that  rest  on  their 

bosoms.' 

Thus  Mabel  had  quoted  when  she  first  saw 
them  so  arrayed,  thinking  of  a  note  from  the 
sweet  singer  of  her  own  native  land. 


228  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Surpassing  the  wonders  of  the  fairyland  about 
them,  were  the  indescribable  splendors  of  the 
heavens  above  them.  The  sunsets  went  beyond 
Mabel's  wildest  dreams  of  what  she  had  thought 
possible.  Sometimes  she  and  Radha  looked  west- 
ward from  the  Dun  side  of  the  first  small  chak- 
kar,  and  saw  all  the  sky  a  mass  of  burnished 
brass  before  which  the  intervening  mists  seemed 
a  rain  of  molten  gold.  Again,  the  clouds  would 
lie  along  the  horizon  in  fantastic  forms,  among 
which  the  girls  imagined  they  could  descry  moun- 
tains and  frowning  castles,  about  which  all  man- 
ner of  fabled  genii  contended. 

One  evening,  in  particular,  the  two  friends 
stood  looking  out  upon  the  ravishing  beauties  of 
the  view  until  night  closed  about  them.  At  first, 
below  the  sun  hung  clouds  of  inky  blackness, 
whilst  far  off  to  the  south  were  others  white  as 
milk.  Above  the  sinking  ball  of  fire  was  a  kalei- 
doscopic picture  with  every  tint  of  color,  and 
every  fanciful  form  that  the  Divine  Artist  can 
paint  with  a  sunbeam  upon  a  canvas  of  cloud. 
Yellow  and  orange,  and  pink  and  red,  and  blue 
and  green,  and  purple  and  mauve — all  were  there, 
mingling  their  glories  from  horizon  to  zenith. 
Each  moment  the  watchers  were  sure  the  climax 
of  glory  had  been  reached ;  but  the  next,  the  swift 
changes  had  brought  a  more  bewildering  com- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  229 

bination  of  color.  Far  away  across  the  Siwaliks 
they  saw  the  Jumna.  But  it  seemed  to  be  of  the 
sky  rather  than  of  the  earth  as  it  flowed  beneath 
the  sunset  light,  a  river  of  liquid  fire. 

Radha  was  softly  singing  to  herself  as  she 
watched  it — 

'  Like  a  river  glorious 
Flows  God's  perfect  peace.' 

At  length  the  last  beams  faded  from  the  west. 
Then  there  shone  in  the  sky  a  single  bright  lamp, 
the  evening  star.  As  the  two  friends  turned  to 
go,  they  saw  through  the  darkness  that  was  thick 
upon  the  lower  hills,  the  many  twinkling  lights  of 
Mussooree.  It  seemed  that  the  sky  had  been  in- 
verted, or  that  they  looked  upon  a  sea  whose 
every  wave  had  imprisoned  a  trembling  star. 

There  was  another  evening  when  Mabel,  Esther 
and  Radha  stood  upon  the  topmost  terrace  of  the 
peaceful  cemetery,  watching  the  sunset  reflected 
from  the  snowy  ranges  eastward.  So  lofty  are 
those  distant  peaks  that  the  watchers  were  in 
deep  shadow  long  before  the  last  rosy  tints  faded 
from  the  snow.  As  Radha  looked,  her  compan- 
ions noticed  she  was  smiling  brightly  and  mur- 
muring softly  to  herself,  but  they  did  not  vex  her 
with  questions.  She  gazed  in  rapt  attention  up- 
on the  white  hills  bathed  in  the  golden  light  re- 


230  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

fleeted  from  the  sunset  skies.  With  eager  in- 
terest she  watched  the  light  rise  higher,  higher, 
higher  till  its  last  faint  glow  faded  from  the  sum- 
mit of  the  highest  peak  and  left  all  gray  and  cold 
in  the  dusk.  Then  she  laughed  aloud  and 
clapped  her  hands  gleefully. 

"  Do  you  know,"  she  said,  turning  upon  her 
friends  eyes  that  were  full  of  happy  tears,  "  I 
have  had  a  vision,  and  it  called  back  to  me  one  of 
long  ago.  Once  from  the  terrace  of  my  Calcutta 
home  I  saw  in  the  sunset  a  prophecy  of  my 
lover's  life.  But  while  I  was  rejoicing  in  its  beau- 
ty, a  black  cloud  was  flung  across  it  to  mar  it 
all.  Then  I  cried  myself  to  sleep  with  grief  and 
fear  for  him.  To-night,  though,  the  vision  has 
come  again,  and  naught  has  darkened  it.  Did 
you  not  see  how  the  light  was  more  and  more 
glorious,  until  at  last  it  faded  away  and  left  noth- 
ing but  the  pure  white  snow?  So  will  my  lover's 
life  be  at  the  end." 

Mabel  turned  away  as  Radha  spoke,  and  Esther 
was  smiling  bitterly  and  regretfully  as  she  linked 
her  arm  in  that  of  her  little  friend  and  said — 

"  Well,  dearie,  we  must  go  home  now." 

Upon  another  day  they  all  three  sat  on  the 
broad  veranda  of  their  cottage.  It  had  been  a  day 
of  pain  to  little  Radha,  and  she  was  not  able  to 
go  out.  But  she  was  suffering  less,  though  feel* 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  231 

ing  weak  as  the  day  closed.  Across  the  valley 
just  before  them,  and  stretching  away  to  distant 
western  hills,  a  curtain  of  mist  and  cloud  inter- 
cepted the  view  of  points  beneath  them.  When 
the  sun  began  to  sink  behind  the  hills,  it  threw 
over  them  a  mantle  of  purple  edged  about  with 
gold  along  the  serrated  sky-line.  Then  the  clouds 
upon  which  they  looked  down  were  transformed 
into  a  golden  pavement,  while  a  pathway  of  light 
stretched  straight  away  to  the  sinking  sun. 

"  Ah,  my  sisters,"  said  Badha  in  a  voice  whose 
music  had  grown  sad  from  pain,  "  if  my  lover 
would  only  come  for  me  now,  we  might  go  across 
the  pavement  of  gold  in  this  pathway  of  light  to 
the  land  where  no  sorrows  can  enter." 

"Never  mind,  girlie,"  said  Esther  cheerily, 
"  you  will  not  have  many  more  days  like  this. 
You  must  stay  in  this  land  with  us  and  be 
happy."  Her  voice  broke,  though,  as  she  thought 
how  little  happiness  the  future  probably  held  in 
.  store  for  her  friend. 

In  their  sitting-room  there  hung  a  picture  that 
they  noticed  Radha  studying  intently  for  several 
days.  She  seldom  went  out  any  more,  and  the 
picture  hung  just  where  she  could  see  it  while 
sitting  near  the  fire  looking  out  the  window.  It 
was  a  copy  of  Naujok's  well-known  painting 
of  St.  Cecilia,  looking  up  from  her  organ  upon 


232  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

the  vision  of  the  three  beautiful  cherubs  who  were 
showering  flowers  upon  her. 

It  had  been  a  bright  day,  and  Radha  had  been 
very  free  from  pain.  She  had  talked  more  cheer- 
fully than  for  a  long  time.  Mabel  had  brought 
her  flowers  which  she  had  woven  into  garlands 
for  the  lover  who  was  surely  coming  soon.  When 
they  were  sitting  together  in  the  gloaming,  she 
told  her  friends  of  what  she  had  been  thinking 
while  watching  the  picture. 

"  With  looking  at  the  picture  and  with  think' 
ing  of  all  that  will  be  when  my  lover  comes  to 
take  me  home  to  be  happy  with  him  always,  I 
saw  a  vision.  I  will  tell  you  what  it  spoke  to 
me." 

The  two  friends  came  and  sat  before  her  to  en- 
courage her  in  her  story.  Such  recitals  were 
usually  too  pathetic  to  be  enjoyable,  especially 
to  Mabel.  But  it  amused  and  helped  the  girl  to 
think  them  and  to  tell  them. 

"  We  are  ready  to  hear,"  Esther  said,  and 
Radha  then  began. 

"  Long,  long  ago  the  good  St.  Cecilia  went  one 
day  into  her  chapel  to  worship  God  with  song 
and  organ.  Very  beautiful  she  looked  in  the  soft 
light  that  came  through  the  richly  stained  win- 
dows. Her  face  seemed  to  shine  with  an  inner 
light,  and  a  halo  of  glory  shone  round  about  her 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  233 

head,  as  her  wonderful  voice  rose  upon  the  notes 
of  the  organ,  and  rang  through  the  chapel.  Even 
unto  the  gathering  of  the  shades  of  evening  she 
sat  and  sang,  unmindful  of  the  flight  of  the  hours. 
Ever  more  rapturous  became  the  music  of  organ 
and  of  voice  as  she  poured  forth  the  adoration 
and  praise  of  her  soul. 

"  Far  away  in  the  Celestial  Country,  bright 
troops  of  cherubs  were  playing  amid  the  flowers 
of  the  fields  of  God.  From  near  and  far  the 
music  of  the  angelic  choirs  rang.  Suddenly, 
three  of  the  beautiful  little  beings,  wandering  far 
from  their  fellows  in  search  of  blossoms  most 
rare,  caught  the  strains  of  distant  music.  Lis- 
tening intently,  they  found  in  the  music  a  new, 
glad  beauty  that  seemed  sweeter  than  the  notes 
of  the  familiar  choruses  of  heaven.  After  bark- 
ening long,  they  looked  into  each  other's  eyes, 
and  then  with  pretty  nods  of  their  wise  little 
heads,  they  gathered  their  arms  full  of  wondrous 
flowers,  and  sped  down  through  space  in  search 
of  the  song  and  the  singer. 

"  They  entered  the  chapel  in  the  twilight  hours. 
Drawing  near  to  the  singer,  they  showered  down 
upon  her  and  the  keys  of  her  organ  their  fra- 
grant burden  of  heaven-grown  flowers.  The  good 
saint  looked  upon  them;  her  song  died  upon  her 
lips;  her  hands  forgot  to  touch  the  ivory  keys; 


234  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

the  music  was  gone.  When  ceased  the  sounds 
that  drew  them  from  their  home  on  high,  the 
cherubs  smiled  upon  the  wondering  saint,  and 
then  sped  away  through  the  gathering  night. 
Pondering  much  within  her  what  might  be  the 
meaning  of  the  vision  vouchsafed  to  her,  Cecilia 
fell  upon  her  knees  in  prayer. 

"  It  was  many  years  thereafter.  A  Maiden  in 
an  Eastern  land  was  touched  one  day  by  the  hand 
of  love.  Amid  bowers  of  living  green,  she  was 
bound  by  garlands  of  flowers  to  the  one  who  was 
her  Beloved.  As  she  went  forth  with  him  whom 
her  soul  loved,  a  song  of  love  welled  up  from  her 
heart  and  filled  all  her  being  with  music.  And 
ever  she  lived  from  that  day  among  flowers,  while 
the  song  in  her  heart  never  died,  but  grew 
sweeter,  and  the  light  in  her  eyes  was  the  won- 
drous shining  of  love's  lamps. 

"  There  was  a  day  when  the  glad  notes  of  that 
song  reached  to  the  very  gates  of  heaven.  Its 
music  fell  upon  the  ears  of  the  three  bright 
cherubs  who  erstwhile  had  barkened  to  the  sing- 
ing of  the  beautiful  Cecilia.  Again  they  paused 
in  their  sport  amid  the  flower-studded  meadows 
of  the  land  of  glory.  With  long  listening,  there 
grew  in  them  the  wish  to  see  the  Singer  and  hear 
more  of  the  song.  So  down  the  happy  trio  once 
more  sped  to  this  far  world. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  235 

"  They  found  the  Singer  waiting  upon  the 
mountain  top  until  her  Beloved  should  come  to 
her  again.  Nor  work  nor  worship  ever  gave 
pause  to  the  song.  It  was  the  music  of  the  heart, 
bubbling  forth  from  fountains  of  love.  When  the 
bright  visitors  drew  very  near  and  the  Singer 
looked  up  and  saw  them,  the  song  did  not  die. 
To  her  it  was  a  vision  of  joys  yet  to  be.  The  love- 
light  deepened  in  her  eyes,  the  song  burst  forth 
with  a  new  note  of  joy.  Those  little  beings  from 
the  bright  realms  above  were  coming  to  dwell 
with  her  as  the  crown  of  love. 

" '  Shall  we  go  or  shall  we  stay? '  they  ques- 
tioned one  another  when  they  found  the  music 
did  not  falter  or  cease. 

"  Then  the  foremost  of  the  cherubs  pondered 
long,  and  thus  replied,  *  Not  all  must  stay,  nor 
all  must  go.  But  while  you  two  go  back,  I  will 
remain.  And  when  I  creep  close  to  the  Singer's 
heart,  if  she  sing  with  a  rapture  unknown  be- 
fore, then  will  I  learn  to  sing  this  song.  You 
must  wait  and  listen  till  you  hear  me  sing,  then 
must  you  come  again.'  So  two  took  their  flight, 
whilst  one  remained. 

"  The  mystery  of  the  coming  of  that  celestial 
life  close  to  the  heart  of  the  Singer — who  knew? 
But  the  music  rose  the  sweeter  from  the  life  of 
the  Singer,  till  the  cherub  thrilled  responsive  to 


236  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

its  chords.  Whereupon  the  Singer  said,  '  I  will 
tarry  on  the  mountains  'mid  the  flowers  and  the 
sunshine  till  the  heavens  open  round  me  in  the 
bliss  of  motherhood. 

"  And  the  vision  ran  before  her  until  the  future 
opened  to  her  view.  She  saw  the  coming  of  a  day 
when  her  Beloved  was  with  her  to  depart  no 
more.  She  heard  within  her  home  the  laughter 
of  the  little  one  who  had  come  from  on  high. 
By  little  and  by  little,  he  had  learned  to  sing  the 
song. 

11  Thus  together  did  they  sing,  until  the  listen- 
ing cherubs  looked  into  each  other's  eyes  and 
said,  *  It  is  time  to  go.' 

"  So  the  light  of  mother-love  deepened  once 
more  in  the  Singer's  eyes  as  they  drew  near. 

" l  Ah,  I  must  stay  and  learn  this  song  too,' 
said  the  second  little  cherub,  as  he  beheld  the  joy 
of  his  former  comrade,  and  heard  the  music  ring. 

"  *  Be  it  so,'  was  the  response,  <  and  if  the 
Singer's  heart  sing  on,  and  you,  too,  can  sing 
with  joy  this  song,  then  I  will  return  full  soon." 

"  And  it  was  so,  with  the  unfolding  of  the 
years  that  the  three  little  beings  who  of  old  had 
visited  the  good  St.  Cecilia  dwelt  always  in  the 
home  of  the  Singer  of  love's  song.  From  morn 
till  night  they  scattered  flowers  in  the  way  of  the 
Singer  and  her  Beloved,  and  anew  did  they  bind 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  237 

them  together  with  garlands,  whilst  ever  the  song 
arose  from  all  their  hearts." 

Radha  paused  and  flashed  her  bright  eyes  up- 
on her  friends. 

"  Is  it  not  a  pretty  vision  I  have  seen  in  the 
picture?  "  she  asked. 

"  Yes,  dear,"  replied  Esther  in  a  choking  voice. 

Mabel  had  fled  to  the  other  room  and  was  sob- 
bing convulsively  with  her  face  buried  in  her 
pillow. 

In  the  night,  the  little  feet  that  had  been  so 
torn  by  the  thorns  as  they  walked  amid  the  roses 
of  life's  pathway,  went  down  and  down  until 
they  touched  the  margin  of  the  river  of  death. 
There  Radha  wrestled  with  the  Angel  of  Life  and 
would  not  let  him  go  until  he  blessed  her.  So 
at  the  breaking  of  the  day  he  blessed  her,  though 
he  left  her  sore  stricken  and  almost  dead.  But 
they  laid  upon  her  breast  the  jewel  that  every 
Indian  woman  so  longs  to  wear,  and  the  patient 
sufferer  smiled  as  she  heard  the  soft  breathing  of 
her  little  son.  The  light  of  holy  joy  that  shone 
from  the  little  mother's  eyes  seemed  to  make  the 
birth-chamber  a  shrine,  and  the  watchers  thought 
of  Bethlehem. 

Radha  remembered  everything  then.  She 
looked  wistfully  into  Mabel's  face  and  seeing 
only  love  there,  she  smiled  and  gently  stroked  her 


238  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

tiand.  She  made  no  inquiries,  and  uttered  no 
complaints.  But  the  way  had  been  too  long  and 
hard  for  the  little  pilgrim  and  her  babe.  On  the 
third  day  it  was  apparent  that  they  were  journey- 
ing on  to  a  fairer  land. 

It  had  been  a  black,  rainy  day.  The  Doctor 
knew  there  was  light  not  far  ahead  for  Radha. 
She  knew  it  too.  She  called  Mabel  to  her  and 
asked  her  forgiveness  for  having  unwittingly 
come  between  her  and  her  happiness.  Then  she 
made  Mabel  promise  she  would  write  to  Frank 
and  tell  him  Radha  forgave  him  all,  and  said  he 
must  not  let  it  spoil  his  life. 

"It  was  all  a  mistake,"  she  said,  "  just  a  ter- 
rible mistake." 

The  clouds  were  scattering  in  the  west  as  the 
hour  of  sunset  drew  near.  A  narrow  beam  of 
light  stole  into  the  room.  The  Doctor  took  her 
hand  off  the  breast  of  Radha's  child.  The  little 
heart  had  stopped. 

"  I  am  going  home  to  Father  now,"  said  Radha. 
"  When  he  went  away  he  said  the  Lord  had  called 
him  to  help  his  own  people  in  that  land — his 
people  who  had  not  walked  far  in  the  way  here. 
He  will  help  me  get  all  the  tangles  out  of  my 
life.  The  Saviour  will  let  him,  I  know." 

A  little  later  she  asked  Mabel  to  sing  to  her. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  239 

"  Sing  '  Immanuel's  Land.'    Father  and  I  loved 
it  and  sang  it  together." 

It  was  hard,  but  strength  came  with  the  effort, 
and  Mabel's  rich  contralto  voice  filled  the  room 
with  mellow  music. 

1  The  sands  of  time  are  sinking, 
The  dawn  of  heaven  breaks, 
The  summer  morn  I've  sighed  for — 
The  fair  sweet  morn  awakes. 
Dark,  dark  has  been  the  midnight, 
But  day  spring  is  at  hand, 
And  glory,  glory  dwelleth 
In  Immanuel's  land.' 

Radha's  face  was  tearful,  yet  radiant,  as  the 
hymn  told  of  the  trials  of  life  and  its  failures, 
but  also  of  the  satisfying  Christ.  Dr.  Emmett 
laid  the  babe  beside  the  mother  as  Mabel  was 
singing  the  last  verse. 

'  Deep  waters  crossed  life's  pathway, 
The  hedge  of  thorns  was  sharp  ; 
Now  these  lie  all  behind  me — 
Oh  for  a  well  tuned  harp ! 
Oh  to  join  Hallelujah 
With  yon  triumphant  band, 
Who  sing  where  glory  dwelleth, 
In  Immanuel's  land.' 

As  the  last  notes  died  away  the  sun  broke 
through  the  clouds  and  shot  its  level  beams  into 


240  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

the  room.  Radha  smiled  brightly  and  motioned 
to  have  her  babe  laid  upon  her  breast. 

"  Baby  dear,"  she  said,  and  she  spoke  in  Ben- 
gali as  she  folded  her  little  one  in  her  arms,  "  it 
is  time  for  us  to  go  now,  for  the  light  is  shining 
to  show  us  the  way,  and  Father  is  waiting  yon- 
der." 

And  so  along  the  shining  pathway  of  the  set- 
ting sun,  the  little  mother  and  her  babe  passed 
on  to  Immanuel's  Land. 

In  the  highest  spot  of  the  topmost  flower-clad 
terrace  of  the  beautiful  resting-place  of  those  who 
sleep,  with  her  babe  upon  her  breast,  they  laid 
her  away  the  next  afternoon.  At  a  later  time 
there  stood  among  the  flowers  a  simple  white 
shaft  looking  out  across  the  wide  valley  to  the 
heights  that  are  clad  in  eternal  snow.  Upon  a 
tablet  which  bore  a  name  and  a  date,  there  was 
written  besides — 

'  SHE  HATH  LOVED  MUCH.' 

If,  as  Radha  once  fancied,  the  Lord  of  Life 
shall  come  to  that  city  of  the  dead  which  lies  up- 
on the  mountain  top,  surely  the  feet  that  were 
anointed  of  old  by  the  woman  who  loved,  and 
that  were  later  nailed  to  the  cruel  cross  for  the 
sake  of  all  who  err,  will  carry  Him  first  to  the 
spot  where  the  mother  and  the  young  child  lie. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  241 


CHAPTER  XIV 

HEAVENS  OF   BRASS   AND   EARTH   OF  IRON 

MABEL  and  Esther  were  at  Mungalpore  again. 
Their  journey  thither  had  been  through  a  land  of 
desolation.  The  rainy  season  was  over,  and  there 
had  been  no  rain.  From  the  summer's  intense 
heat  the  earth  was  baked  and  cracked  open.  All 
vegetation  was  dead.  Plowing  had  been  useless, 
even  if  it  had  been  possible.  To  sow  seed  which, 
could  not  germinate  or  grow  would  have  been 
sheer  waste  of  grain  and  energy.  Everywhere 
the  bare  and  hard-baked  earth  spelled  one  dread 
word — Famine.  On  the  blank  and  hopeless  faces 
of  the  people  was  written  a  companion  word — 
Death. 

The  Government  had  begun  prompt  and  far- 
reaching  measures  to  help  the  wretched  people 
of  the  stricken  areas.  Later,  Christian  philan- 
thropy was  to  send  rich  stores  of  grain  and 
money  from  many  lands.  Missionaries  and 
famine  relief  agents  were  to  give  themselves  with- 


242  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

out  stint  to  the  fight  against  starvation.  Yet 
directly  and  indirectly,  Famine  was  to  destroy 
more  than  a  million  people  before  its  ravages 
were  stayed. 

Everybody  acquainted  with  the  conditions  of 
life  in  India  knew  from  the  first  how  it  would  be 
before  the  next  monsoon  could  end  the  drought. 
It  was  not  to  be  expected  that  the  farmers  would 
have  any  reserve  to  draw  upon,  in  a  land  where 
the  average  annual  income  does  not  exceed  eight 
dollars.  Ignorant  critics  elsewhere  might  talk 
of  the  want  being  due  to  thriftlessness  and  prodi- 
gality.  Intelligent  people  knew  that  no  amount 
of  frugal  industry  could  avert  suffering  in  any 
country  where  there  was  a  total  failure  of  all 
crops,  and  a  scarcity  of  water  for  men  and  cattle 
throughout  whole  provinces.  Much  less,  then, 
could  misery  be  avoided  in  India  where  all  the 
masses  live  on  the  verge  of  pauperism  continually, 
and  where  about  eighty  million  people  never 
know  what  it  is  to  get  enough  to  eat  from  birth 
to  burning  ghat. 

All  along  their  journey  from  the  hills  the  ladies 
had  seen  evidences  of  suffering  already  begun. 
Crowds  of  men  and  women  were  about  the  rail- 
way stations,  striking  with  open  palms  upon  their 
bare,  empty  stomachs1,  and  beseeching  aid.  The 
gods,  the  Government,  the  white-faced  Sahiblog 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  243 

these  were  their  refuge.  At  first  they  were  dis- 
posed to  regard  the  Government  as  a  kind  of 
angry  foreign  god  who  had  withheld  the  rain  in 
order  to  starve  the  people  and  get  so  many 
lakhs  of  livers,  or  so  much  grease  from  their 
bones.  Their  priests  taught  them  so,  for  the 
priests  were  as  ignorant  as  the  people,  and  were 
crafty  besides.  But  their  gods  did  not  seem  much 
in  evidence  in  any  relief  measures.  Neither  did 
their  wealthy  fellow-countrymen  who  worshiped 
those  gods. 

After  all,  the  Sircar,  the  Government,  was 
proving  a  mighty  god,  and  aiding  no  little.  The 
white  people,  too,  seemed  both  rich  and  kind. 
Especially  were  the  missionaries  proving  friends 
in  the  time  of  need.  It  would  do  no  harm  to  call 
on  their  gods,  but  for  practical,  everyday  pur- 
poses, the  Sahiblog  were  surer  and  more  promis- 
ing refuges.  Hence  they  were  everywhere  beset. 

Dr.  Emmett  and  her  friend  had  their  hearts 
wrung  many  times  by  what  they  heard  and  saw 
along  the  way.  Many  villages  were  deserted,  the 
people  having  fled  to  larger  towns  and  famine  re- 
lief camps.  Occasionally,  little  children  were 
discovered  crying  beside  their  dead  parents,  who 
had  fallen  by  the  way  in  their  too  tardy  flight. 
Again,  ghastly  skeletons  or  partly  consumed 
bodies  were  noticed  where  they  had  lain  down  to 


244  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

be  food  for  jackals  and  vultures.  The  harvest 
of  death  was  the  only  harvest  to  be  garnered  that 
year.  It  had  begun  in  earnest  already.  The 
young  women  had  been  heart-sick  at  the  begin- 
ning of  their  journey  over  the  loss  of  their  friend. 
By  the  time  they  reached  home,  they  were  well- 
nigh  worn  out  from  sympathy  with  the  starving 
myriads  of  the  land. 

Arrived  at  Mungalpore,  they  found  themselves 
at  the  heart  of  the  famine-stricken  district.  The 
sights  that  had  distressed  them  along  the  way 
were  now  at  their  very  door,  day  and  night.  But 
there  was  a  difference,  it  was  now  possible  to 
throw  themselves  into  the  work  of  relief.  Thus 
there  was  an  escape  from  their  overwrought  feel- 
ings which  the  girls  were  not  slow  to  avail  of 
and  appreciate. 

The  medical  skill  of  Dr.  Emmett  was  in  con- 
stant demand.  Mabel  had  made  good  progress  in 
Hindi.  She  had  decided  to  stay  and  work  for 
India,  for  the  present  at  least.  So  she  and  her 
friend  gave  themselves  heart  and  soul  to  the  work 
of  helping  the  perishing  multitudes  about  them. 
The  cool  season  had  begun — that  was  a  comfort 
to  the  workers.  Perhaps  the  winter  rains,  about 
Christmas-time,  would  be  copious  enough  to  af- 
ford some  relief. 

It  was  not  the  policy  of  the  Government,  or 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  245 

of  the  missionaries,  to  pauperize  the  people. 
They  must  be  fed,  but  they  must  also  be  made  to 
work  for  their  food.  The  Government  could  use 
them  in  constructing  railways  and  irrigation 
canals  that  would  help  prevent  or  lessen  the  evils 
of  droughts  in  years  to  come.  The  missionaries 
could  employ  them  in  building  needed  bungalows, 
orphanages,  schools  and  chapels,  or  in  digging 
tanks  and  wells.  So  the  people  were  brought  to- 
gether in  large  camps  where  work  was  needed. 
Great  kitchens  were  established,  where  many 
cooks  labored  incessantly,  cooking  rice,  and  the 
like,  in  huge  caldrons  placed  in  wide  semicircles 
out  of  doors  about  the  cook's  huts.  Thus  were 
millions  saved  from  starvation,  while  the  treas- 
ure poured  out  for  the  purpose  was  made  to  do 
work  of  enduring  benefit  to  the  country. 

"  There  is  no  use  talking,"  announced  Miss  Best 
at  dinner  one  evening,  "we  shall  have  to  put  up 
some  buildings  and  take  permanent  charge  of  all 
these  children  about  here  whose  parents  are 
dying."  No  one  had  been  talking,  for  or  against 
the  project.  The  good  lady  was  merely  announc- 
ing her  surrender  to  a  responsibility  which  she 
had  hoped  it  would  not  be  necessary  for  her  to 
assume. 

"  Thank  the  Lord,"  cried  Dr.  Emmett.  "I 
have  been  at  my  wits'  end  to  know  what  to  make 


246  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

these  people  do  next  for  their  food.  I  have  ex- 
hausted myself  trying  to  get  Ananda  Babu  to  let 
me  put  them  to  enlarging  that  tank  he  built 
several  years  ago." 

"What's  his  objection?"  asked  Mabel. 

"  Oh,  he  fears  it  will  spoil  the  merit  he  stored 
up  in  heaven  by  building  it  at  his  own  cost,  if  he 
lets  us  Christians  go  to  improving  it.  I  don't 
care  a  piece  about  his  store  of  merit.  I  am 
thinking  of  the  store  of  water  we  might  have  had 
there  if  the  tank  has  been  larger.  But  he  is 
inexorable." 

Next  day  work  was  begun  near  the  ladies'  bun- 
galow on  a  girls'  orphanage.  At  the  same  time 
the  men  in  the  station  undertook  the  building 
of  a  home  for  boys.  While  the  houses  were  build- 
ing an  effort  was  made  to  gather  together  all  the 
orphans  and  deserted  children  for  miles  around. 
There  was  no  dearth  of  the  poor  little  waifs, 
though  it  was  not  always  easy  to  capture  them,  or 
keep  them  when  caught.  They  had  heard  blood- 
curdling tales  of  what  the  terrible  white-faced 
gentry  would  do  with  them.  In  mortal  terror 
that  their  grease  would  be  cooked  out — the  poor 
starved  wretches  had  no  grease  left  in  them — or 
that  their  livers  would  be  cut  out  and  sent  to  the 
great  white-faced  queen  across  the  black  water 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  247 

who  had  caused  the  famine  for  that  very  purpose, 
they  often  hid  away. 

Gradually,  however,  several  hundred  children 
were  gathered  in.  Poor  little  starvelings,  the 
fight  with  death  was  then  only  begun.  All  but  a 
favored  few  were  terribly  diseased  from  long 
starvation.  Some  had  stubborn  fevers;  others 
coughed  up  blood  continually.  Many  were 
covered  with  boils.  Not  a  few  had  famine  sores 
eating  out  their  eyes,  causing  their  teeth  to  fall 
out,  gnawing  into  their  windpipes.  The  brave 
young  doctor  and  her  faithful  assistants  worked 
with  them,  nothing  daunted  by  their  loathsome- 
ness. Only  the  weakest  and  worst  cases  baffled 
her  skill  and  ended  in  death. 

Miss  Best  took  it  greatly  to  heart  that  recruits 
for  the  boys'  orphanage  were  more  numerous  than 
for  hers. 

"  I  do  not  understand  it,"  she  declared.  "  Why 
are  boys  more  available,  when  we  suppose  that 
they  are  more  highly  thought  of  by  their  relatives 
and  sure  to  be  kept  by  them  if  possible.  Can  it 
be  that  the  wretched  creatures  are  starving  their 
girls  first  in  order  to  save  the  boys?  " 

"  I  wish  that  were  true,"  said  the  doctor  rather 
savagely. 

"  A  strange  wish,  Miss  Emmett,  for  one  of  your 
sex,"  Miss  Best  remarked  severely. 


248  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  I  mean  what  I  say,"  Esther  replied.  Then 
she  went  on  with  professional  bluntness, 
"  Famine  is  not  the  only  fiend  abroad  in  this  land. 
Girls  are  harder  to  get  than  boys  because  they  are 
in  demand  by  the  agents  of  the  rich  natives,  and 
European  soldiers  and  merchants.  Those  wretch- 
ed harpies  are  scouring  the  country  and  circulat- 
ing stories  about  the  cruelties  of  the  missionaries 
that  make  the  girls  flee  to  them  from  us.  More 
than  that,  nearly  fifteen  per  cent,  of  the  girls 
being  rescued  have  been  ruined  for  life.  Many 
here  and  elsewhere  who  are  only  children  are 
suffering  from  dread  diseases.  The  misery  of  it 
all  is  wearing  out  my  life.  I  don't  see  how  God 
can  look  on  the  ills  of  this  land  and  live." 

"  In  all  their  afflictions  He  was  afflicted." 
Mabel  spoke  almost  in  a  whisper. 

"  Oh ! "  said  Jennie  Pierce  in  an  awed  voice, 
"  let  us  work  hard  to  bring  the  day  when  He  shall 
see  of  the  travil  of  His  soul,  and  be  satis- 
fied." 

The  winter  rains  had  come  and  gone.  Mere 
passing  showers,  they  could  do  no  good  in  such  a 
parched  and  thirsty  land.  They  even  added  to 
the  misery  of  the  people  by  making  them  cold  and 
wet.  The  weeks  had  worn  on  till  the  heat  had 
begun.  It  came  early;  it  would  last  long.  There 
was  at  least  hope  that  at  its  end  the  rains  would 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  249 

come.  No  one  dared  think  of  what  would  happen 
if  they  should  not  come. 

Everybody  was  sleeping  out  doors  to  try  to 
keep  cool.  Beds  were  set  up  far  enough  from  the 
bungalows  to  escape  the  heat  they  radiated  all 
night.  Even  then  it  was  hard  to  get  cool  enough 
to  sleep  till  nearly  morning.  Esther  and  Mabel 
had  their  beds  side  by  side  under  a  great  clump 
of  bamboos.  They  liked  the  shade  from  the  bril- 
liant moonlight.  The  natives  said  the  moon 
would  twist  their  faces  if  they  slept  in  its  light. 
They  were  not  much  afraid  of  that,  but  liked  to 
sleep  in  the  shadow  of  the  foliage.  All  too  early 
their  slumbers  would  be  disturbed  by  the  light  of 
day. 

Caw  of  crow,  and  not  crow  of  cock,  is  what 
arouses  the  reluctant  sleeper  in  India.  Those 
ubiquitous,  multitudinous,  noisy  birds  are  thicker 
everywhere  in  India,  country  and  city  alike,  than 
English  sparrows  are  in  America.  The  first  night 
she  slept  out,  Mabel  was  awakened  by  a  pistol 
shot,  followed  by  a  deafening  clamor  from  all  the 
crows  in  the  neighborhood.  Starting  up  and 
looking  wildly  about,  she  saw  Esther  lying  in  bed 
and  following  up  her  first  shot  by  a  rapid  fire 
into  the  bevy  of  birds  gathered  to  hold  a  post- 
mortem over  their  fallen  mate. 

"  Sorry  I  startled  you,  dear,"  said  the  Doctor. 


250  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  I  couldn't  help  it.  Those  nasty  birds  perched 
on  the  mosquito  net  frame  of  our  beds  and  made 
such  a  row  that  I  couldn't  stand  it.  They  will  be 
more  respectful  now.  Probably  they  won't  give 
me  another  shot  at  them  for  a  long  time.  I  have 
to  teach  them  manners  once  in  a  while."  They 
lay  still,  watching  the  noisy  birds  fly  away. 

"  If  the  Hindus  would  stop  stealing  milk  the 
crows  might  die  out  "  said  Esther,  with  a  yawn. 

"How's  that?"  asked  Mabel. 

"  Oh,  the  Laws  of  Manu  say  that  milk-stealers 
transmigrate  into  crows,"  was  the  reply. 

The  crows  had  made  off,  but  so  had  sleep  for 
that  morning.  Soon  day  was  upon  them  with 
its  heat  and  nerve-racking  toil. 

The  famine  was  at  its  height.  All  the  scanty 
reserve  of  the  few  fortunate  farmers  was  ex- 
hausted. Driven  by  extreme  want,  even  the  half- 
wild  peoples  of  the  hill  country  were  overcom- 
ing their  fear  of  the  white  man  and  crying  to  him 
for  aid.  It  was  difficult  to  get  rest  from  them, 
day  or  night. 

"  Hungry  souls !  Hungry  souls !  "  That  was 
the  cry  which  fell  upon  the  ears  everywhere. 

Hard  to  endure  by  day  when  busy  endeavoring 
to  relieve  the  all-encompassing  want,  it  was  yet 
more  trying  whilst  attempting  to  sleep  at  night. 
Worst  of  all  was  it  at  meals  to  see  skeleton  hands 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  251 

pulling  at  the  window  blinds,  or  parting  the  vines 
about  the  veranda,  to  catch  glimpses  of  the  pain- 
drawn  faces,  and  to  hear  that  cry,  "  Hungry 
souls!  Hungry  souls!"  Yet  the  workers  must 
rest  and  eat  or  there  would  soon  be  none  alive 
to  help  the  starving. 

The  sky  was  like  heated  brass;  the  earth  was 
like  iron.  Tortured  by  the  long  drought  and  ter- 
rific heat,  it  cracked  asunder  into  great  fissures 
and  yawning  chasms.  The  hot  wind,  the  death- 
dealing  loo,  moaned  and  sighed  the  livelong  day. 
Caught  up  by  the  furnace  blast,  columns  of  dust 
marched  to  and  fro,  or  whirled  and  staggered 
about  like  drunken  giants.  At  times  the  sun  was 
blotted  from  the  sky  by  dust  clouds  which 
darkened  the  land  at  noontide.  Under  the  piti- 
less heavens,  upon  the  hard-baked  earth,  the  chil- 
dren of  the  land  were  dying.  Mingled  with  the 
moan  of  the  hot  blast  was  their  cry — '  Hungry 
souls!'  Prolonging  the  shriek  of  the  wind 
through  the  withered  trees  was  the  wail  of  the 
perishing — l  Ail  Ai!  Hae!  Hae!'  It  was  a 
lament  for  the  dying,  and  a  requiem  for  the  dead. 

With  what  strength  they  had  left  the  men  and 
women  at  the  mission  toiled  on,  as  other  mission- 
aries and  Government  employees  were  doing  else- 
where. Two  of  the  force  had  been  obliged  to 
flee  to  the  mountains.  One  young  man  had  to  be 


252  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

hurried  out  of  the  country.  It  seemed  to  Mabel 
that  none  of  them  ever  breathed  any  more,  they 
just  gasped  for  breath.  Nor  did  they  eat.  They 
forced  unrelished  food  down  their  dry  throats. 
And  sleep?  Ah,  no!  life  was  a  mad  nightmare, 
day  and  night. 

The  station  had  been  unexpectedly  reinforced 
early  in  June.  Unheralded  save  by  a  brief  note 
to  Dr.  Emmett,  Mr.  Lockland  arrived  one  day. 
He  had  been  at  work  in  south  India,  and  in  Ben- 
gal, unscourged  by  the  famine.  Drawn  to  Mun- 
galpore  by  his  desire  to  see  Esther,  but  willing  to 
work,  and  full  of  fresh  life  and  vigor,  he  was 
not  unwelcomed.  It  is  true  Esther  had  not 
greeted  him  effusively.  She  had  even  said  some 
very  ungracious  things  about  the  gentleman, 
when  under  fire  of  teasing.  He  was  too  busy, 
however,  to  obtrude  his  hobbies;  nor  was  there 
much  danger  that  he  would  be  offended  by  any 
of  the  jaded  missionaries  proving  too  gamesome 
just  then.  Though  Esther  had  not  yet  admitted 
it,  Mr.  Lockland  was  certainly  appearing  in  a 
better  light  at  Mungalpore  than  he  had  at  Lan- 
dour.  When  provoked  one  day  by  her  tormentors 
into  sputtering  about  him  in  the  presence  of  Mr. 
Fremont,  the  veteran  of  the  station,  that  gentle- 
man made  a  very  good  diagnosis  of  the  case. 

"  My  dear/'  said  the  good  man,  "  the  lad  will 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  253 

outgrow  all  that.  The  trouble  with  him,  like 
most  such  people,  is  that  he  takes  himself  and 
his  notions  too  seriously.  He  is  too  sane  a  man 
not  to  come  to  himself  yet,  and  live  a  natural  life. 
Unfortunately  he  is  deficient  in  a  sense  of  humor. 
If  he  had  that  gift  it  would  save  him  from  many 
ridiculous  positions." 

Miss  Emmett  did  not  say  anything.  She  was 
not  thinking  of  the  young  man's  diatribes  against 
sports.  There  had  arisen  before  her  a  vision  of 
two  dripping,  bedraggled  figures  toiling  up  the 
steeps  of  Landour.  "  Yes,  a  sense  of  humor  might 
have  prevented  one  ridiculous  blunder,  at  least," 
thought  she. 

Meanwhile,  the  man  in  question  was  winning 
golden  opinions  from  everybody  by  his  cheerful, 
whole-hearted  service.  Mabel  had  never  been 
sure  that  her  friend's  decision,  once  so  emphati- 
cally given,  was  final.  She  was  watching  for  new 
developments. 

The  ladies  were  trying  to  eat  lunch  on  the 
afternoon  of  the  last  day  in  June.  It  had  been 
the  worst  of  all  the  bad  days. 

"  Never  again  will  I  say  that  Indian  summer 
is  my  favorite  season,"  said  the  Doctor.  "  It  used 
to  be  in  America  whenever  I  could  identify  it. 
Out  here  it  is  not  so  vague  and  uncertain  a  time." 


254  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  '  What  is  so  rare  as  a  day  in  June? ' "  quoth 
Mabel  with  a  show  of  cheerfulness. 

'  The  temper  of  chums,  the  love  of  your  wife,  or  the  new 

piano's  tune 

Which   of  the  three  do  you  care  to  test  at  the  end  of  an 
Indian  June  ? ' 

sang  Jennie  Pierce  in  a  voice  none  too  musical. 

Then  conversation  lagged.  Eating  was  even 
less  a  success. 

"  The  weather  has  certainly  got  on  the  cook's 
nerves,"  Miss  Pierce  complained  as  she  tried  in 
vain  to  tempt  her  appetite.  "  Look  at  these 
clammy  chapaties.  I  have  heard  of  bread  baked 
by  moonlight  on  a  gravestone.  This  must  be  it." 

"  The  trouble  is  not  with  the  cook  nor  his 
viands.  It  is  your  liver,  my  dear,"  said  the  medi- 
cal woman.  "  A  poet  has  said  of  Gautama's  stal- 
lion— l  whose  liver  is  a  tempest,  and  his  blood,  red 
flame.'  That's  what  is  the  matter  with  all  of  us. 
If  the  heat  isn't  soon  turned  off,  and  the  water 
turned  on  we'll  turn  to  tempest  and  flame." 

The  tiffin  was  interrupted  by  a  sudden  dark- 
ness. The  sand  driving  against  the  windows 
sounded  almost  like  rain.  When  the  wind  lulled, 
the  sky  had  a  peculiar  coppery  color.  Then  it 
changed,  little  by  little,  to  the  blackness  of  rain 
clouds.  The  time  that  man  had  longed  and 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  255 

prayed  for  through  weary  months  seemed  near 
at  hand.  Meteorological  experts  had  announced 
the  forming  of  monsoons— -the  one,  out  in  the 
Arabian  Sea,  the  other,  in  the  Bay  of  Bengal. 
According  to  their  calculations  it  was  time  now 
for  these  storms  to  move  inland,  and  up  country. 

A  breathless  stillness  fell  upon  the  land. 
Blacker  and  blacker  grew  the  sky,  till  the  whole 
heavens  were  covered  by  low  hanging  clouds. 
Every  living  thing  cowered  close  to  the  earth  in 
terror.  The  heat  radiated  from  the  long  baked 
earth  seemed  caught  by  the  clouds  and  turned 
back  upon  the  suffering  people.  Nerves  that  had 
been  overwrought  for  many  months  felt  as  though 
they  would  snap.  Was  the  end  of  all  things  at 
hand? 

There  came  a  mighty  rush  of  wind.  It  licked 
up  the  dust  and  drove  it  madly  along.  Instantly, 
a  forked  and  lurid  lightning  flash  cleft  asunder 
the  inky  sky  from  horizon  to  zenith.  Simultane- 
ously, a  terrific  peal  of  thunder  reverberated  so 
heavily  that  the  houses  shook  to  their  founda- 
tions— then,  down  rushed  the  rain  in  torrents. 

"  Deliverance  is  come  at  last ! "  cried  Mabel, 
as  she  and  the  others  who  had  been  peering 
through  the  windows  rushed  out  upon  the  veranda 
to  hear  and  feel  the  grateful  drops.  They 
stretched  their  hands  out  into  the  rain,  and 


256  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

laughed  and  cried  by  turns.  Indoors,  beneath  the 
swinging  punkahs,  to  the  music  of  the  patter  of 
the  rain  upon  the  roof  tiles,  they  slept  that  night. 

But  the  end  of  the  drought  was  not  yet  as- 
sured. The  first  showers  would  cease.  The 
clouds  would  sail  away  northward.  There  would 
be  anxious  days  of  waiting.  Would  the  mon- 
soons scatter  and  float  away  as  they  had  done  the 
year  before?  Or  would  the  great  mountains 
catch  them  and  turn  them  back  to  revive  the 
thirsty  land?  Men  could  only  hope,  and  pray, 
and  wait. 

So  the  work  went  on.  Nerves  grew  tense  once 
more  after  their  brief  relaxation.  Though  many 
of  the  children  of  the  soil  had  lain  down  to  rise 
no  more,  and  multitudes  had  long  been  receiv- 
ing help,  new  recruits,  gaunt  and  hungry,  kept 
crowding  in  to  the  relief  camps  daily.  Even  if 
the  rains  came,  it  would  be  many  weeks  before 
the  farmers  could  again  provide  food  for  them- 
selves. 

The  clouds  were  beginning  to  return,  with  good 
promise  of  rain.  Esther  was  standing  out  doors 
one  evening  with  little  Clyde  Fremont. 

"  Hi !"  cried  the  little  chap  suddenly,  "  I  felt 
a  drop  of  rain  on  my  nose." 

"  I  didn't,"  said  Esther,  with  the  ready  skep- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  257 

ticism  which  doubts  the  reality  of  good  things  ex- 
perienced only  by  others. 

"  Ho  I  how  could  you  feel  it  when  it  was  on 
my  nose,"  retorted  the  young  philosopher. 

It  was  not  long,  however,  until  all  noses  be- 
neath the  open  heavens  could  feel  the  patter  of 
the  falling  drops.  They  were  the  forerunners  of 
abundance  of  rain.  All  that  night  it  fell  in  tor- 
rents. Throughout  the  next  day,  and  the  next, 
it  seemed  to  be  coming  down  in  sheets  rather  than 
drops.  For  many  days  it  continued  thus.  Now 
and  again,  the  hot  sun  would  break  through  the 
clouds  and  set  all  things  a  steaming.  Little  by 
little  the  earth  grew  soft  and  moist.  By  and  by 
the  hidden  seeds  that  had  rested  in  the  dust 
through  the  rainless  months  began  to  germinate. 
Then,  as  if  by  magic,  the  barren  land  was  clothed 
in  living  green.  Once  more  the  desert  and  waste 
places  were  blossoming  and  blooming  as  the  rose. 
Men  began  to  breathe  freely.  The  drought  was 
over.  The  famine  would  end. 


258  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


AN    EMERGENCY    CALL 

DIFFICULTIES  seemed  to  thicken  with  the  com- 
ing of  the  rains.  Instead  of  keeping  the  people 
on  the  public  works,  and  feeding  them  at  the 
camps,  they  had  to  be  sent  back  to  their  farms. 
There  they  must  be  provided  with  seed  to  put  in 
their  crops.  They  could  work  but  slowly,  for 
they  had  almost  all  of  them  lost  their  oxen  by 
starvation.  Until  the  harvest  could  be  garnered 
they  must  be  supplied  with  food.  The  herculean 
labors  of  the  Government  relief  agents  were  by 
no  means  ended. 

The  mission  stations  worked  upon  a  smaller 
scale  in  more  restricted  areas.  Their  tasks  were, 
however,  no  lighter  in  proportion  to  their  force 
and  the  means  at  hand.  In  a  number  of  places 
orphanages  had  been  established  where  hundreds 
of  sickly  children  of  all  ages  were  being  cared 
for.  All  hospitals,  dispensaries,  and  medical 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  259 

missionaries  were  taxed  to  the  utmost  by  the 
physical  maladies  attending  the  famine.  Ex- 
ceptional opportunities  and  need  were  at  hand 
for  all  kinds  of  evangelistic  effort. 

Close  upon  the  heels  of  the  rains,  came  an  out- 
break of  cholera.  That  was  the  usual  order,  but 
the  famine  made  it  far  worse  than  common. 
Certainly  nobody  at  Mungalpore  had  any  oppor- 
tunity for  leisure,  least  of  all,  Dr.  Emmett.  Her 
hospital  was  full.  The  orphanage  children  need- 
ed constant  medical  attention.  All  sorts  of  peo- 
ple sought  her  aid  from  near  and  far.  The 
natives  were  not  the  only  sick  people.  She  did 
not  spare  herself.  Her  constant  occasion  for 
thanksgiving  was  that  she  had  kept  in  excellent 
health. 

Late  one  afternoon  there  came  to  the  Doctor's 
bungalow  a  wet  and  weary  messenger.  Finding 
the  Doctor  was  at  home  he  insisted  upon  seeing 
her  at  once.  Esther  went  out  upon  the  veranda 
to  see  the  man. 

"  Oh,  Defender  of  the  Poor,"  he  cried,  crouch- 
ing to  the  floor  and  touching  the  Doctor's  shoes, 
"  The  Mem  Sahib  is  very  sick.  The  Sahib  knows 
not  what  to  do.  Unless  you  come  at  once  the  Mem 
Sahib  will  be  dead." 

"  What  Mem  Sahib?  "  Where  is  she?  "  asked 
the  Doctor. 


260  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  It  is  the  Bura  Mem,  Presence,  and  she  is 
many  miles  from  here  at  Munghier." 

"  The  Bura  Mem  at  Munghier?  Do  you  mean 
Dickson  Mem  Sahib?  Is  she  ill? 

"  Yes,  your  Honor,"  replied  the  man.  "  It  is 
now  five  days  since  the  Sahib  told  me  the  Bura 
Mem  would  be  dead  of  a  great  fever  if  I  did  not 
bring  the  Doctor  Miss  Sahib." 

"  Five  days !"  cried  Esther.  "  Then  why  did 
you  not  come  to  me  at  once?  How  has  it  taken 
you  five  days  to  come  forty  miles?" 

"  Mercy,  Defender  of  the  Poor !"  The  man 
prostrated  himself  again.  "  It  is  by  no  fault  of 
mine.  I  came  away  at  once  with  all  speed.  The 
roads  were  very  deep  with  mud,  but  I  ran  very 
fast  till  I  came  to  the  river.  By  reason  of  the 
great  rains  it  was  very  high  and  swift.  It  was 
only  to-day  that  I  could  get  a  boat  to  bring  me 
across.  So  I  am  here.  But  your  Honor  will  be 
pleased  to  come  at  once,  or  the  boatmen  may  not 
wait." 

"  I  will  start  as  soon  as  possible.  Go  to  the 
servants'  quarters,  and  rest  and  take  food." 

The  Dicksons  were  fellow-missionaries.  Their 
station  was  off  the  railroad.  The  forty  miles  that 
lay  between  them  and  Mungalpore  was  over  a 
rough  road.  Only  in  the  winter  could  it  be 
traveled  with  any  degree  of  comfort.  During  the 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  261 

hot  season  the  journey  had  to  be  made  at  night. 
In  the  rains  the  mud  made  it  almost  impassable. 
Then  what  was  at  other  times  a  tiny  streamlet,  or 
a  dry  and  sandy  water  course,  became  a  wide 
river,  both  deep  and  swift.  George  Dickson,  his 
wife  and  little  girl,  were  the  only  white  people 
in  the  place.  As  the  servant  had  said,  Mrs.  Dick- 
son  had  become  seriously  ill  with  fever.  There 
was  no  medical  aid  nearer  than  Mungalpore. 
The  best  that  could  be  done  was  to  dispatch  a 
messenger  and  anxiously  await  the  result.  Dick- 
son  well  knew  how  long  it  might  be  before  the 
Doctor  could  get  there.  That  she  would  come  at 
the  earliest  possible  moment  he  was  certain. 

"  Mabel,"  said  Esther  going  into  the  dispensary 
where  her  friend  was  busy,  "  I  have  an  urgent 
call  that  I  must  answer  at  once.  I  may  be  gone 
several  days." 

She  explained  who  was  ill  and  how  the  message 
had  come. 

"  However  will  you  get  there,  dear?  "  Mabel 
queried.  "  The  roads  must  be  dreadful.  It  is 
raining  again  in  torrents.  In  a  few  hours  it  will 
be  dark." 

"  I  shall  go  by  bullock  cart  to  the  river.  The 
man  tells  me  that  Mr.  Dickson's  cart  willjbe  wait- 
ing on  the  other  side.  It  will  be  slow  work  though. 
I  only  hope  we  can  cross  the  river  safely." 


262  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  But  you  will  surely  not  go  alone." 

"  Yes,  I  shall — with  the  driver  and  the  messen- 
ger." 

"  Let  me  go  with  you,"  pleaded  her  friend. 

"  Nonsense !  I  shall  do  no  such  thing.  You  are 
needed  here  anyway." 

The  Doctor  hurried  out  to  prepare  for  her 
journey. 

Mabel  was  resourceful.  She  dreaded  the 
thought  of  the  Doctor's  setting  out  accompanied 
only  by  natives.  She  wrote  a  little  note  and  dis- 
patched a  servant  with  orders  to  find  Mr.  Lock- 
land  and  put  it  into  his  hands.  She  thought  she 
knew  that  gentleman  well  enough  to  be  sure  that 
Esther  would  not  lack  an  attendant  upon  her 
long,  hard  journey.  She  did  not  misjudge. 

Just  as  Esther  stepped  into  the  ghari,  Mr. 
Lockland  cantered  up  to  the  bungalow,  evidently 
well  equipped  for  a  wet  ride.  Reining  in  his 
horse,  he  peered  under  the  cover  of  the  cart  at  its 
occupant. 

"  Whither  away  at  so  late  an  hour  on  so  wet 
an  afternoon?"  he  asked. 

"  Oh,  I'm  called  to  see  a  sick  lady  some  miles 
out,"  answered  the  girl. 

"  How  fortunate  that  I  was  starting  for  a  ride 
just  at  this  time.  I  hope  you  will  allow  me  the 
privilege  of  accompanying  you." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  263 

"  Certainly/'  replied  Esther.  "If  you  can  find 
any  pleasure  in  keeping  pace  with  these  animals 
on  such  a  day  as  this,  it  would  be  cruel  to  forbid 
If 

The  driver  clucked  to  his  beasts  and  poked 
them  with  the  handle  of  his  whip.  They  moved 
off  at  a  rather  smart  trot  for  such  clumsy  looking 
animals. 

"That's  right,  Ghulam,"  said  the  Doctor. 
"  You  must  drive  just  as  fast  as  the  road  will  let 
you." 

Conversation  between  the  lady  and  the  horse- 
man was  well-nigh  impossible.  The  curtains  of 
the  vehicle  were  fastened  close  to  keep  out  the 
water.  The  noise  of  the  rain  and  wheels  and 
hoofs  offered  a  further  obstacle.  Occasionally, 
Lockland  rode  a  little  ahead,  and  looking  back 
through  the  opening  at  the  front  of  the  cart, 
threw  a  remark  at  the  lady. 

"  I  fear  we  shall  have  trouble  at  the  river." 
He  realized  he  had  made  a  mistake,  and  checked 
himself.  But  the  girl  had  heard  him. 

"  How  do  you  happen  to  know  where  I  am 
going?  "  she  called  to  him  rather  curtly. 

He  bit  his  tongue  and  flushed.  She  was  ex- 
pecting a  reply  though. 

"  Why  I  learned  from  a  servant  that  you  were 


264  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

going  out  to  Munghier."  That  was  indirectly 
true. 

They  splashed  on  in  silence  again  through  the 
mud  and  driving  rain. 

Suddenly  the  girl  commanded  the  driver  to 
stop  the  cart. 

"  Mr.  Lockland,"  she  said,  putting  out  her  head 
and  addressing  the  man,  "  I  fear  you  feel  under 
necessity  to  accompany  me  on  this  unpleasant 
journey.  I  cannot  allow  you  to  go  to  so  much 
trouble  on  my  account.  I  shall  get  along  all  right. 
Let  me  beg  you  to  return." 

"  Miss  Emmett,"  was  the  prompt  response, 
"  I  could  not  maintain  my  self-respect  as  a  gentle- 
man if  I  should  permit  any  lady  to  go  unattended 
upon  such  a  journey.  Much  less,  then,  can  I 
think  of  leaving  you  here." 

Esther  flushed  slightly  and  said  no  more.  They 
jogged  on  again.  Independent  and  used  to  taking 
care  of  herself  as  she  was,  it  was  not  in  the  girl's 
heart  to  be  sorry  a  man  was  at  hand  for  emer- 
gencies that  might  arise.  It  was  becoming  dark. 
The  driver  stopped  and  lighted  the  lantern  swing- 
ing from  the  axle  of  the  ghari. 

Esther  addressed  her  escort.  "  If  you  are  de- 
termined to  go,  Mr.  Lockland,  you  may  be  of  real 
help  if  you  will  ride  on  to  the  river  and  have  the 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  265 

boatman  ready  to  start  when  I  arrive.  That  may 
save  a  lot  of  time." 

"  Most  willingly,"  he  replied,  "only  I  do  not 
like  to  leave  you  alone  on  this  dark  road." 

"  I  am  quite  safe  and  not  afraid,"  the  girl  de- 
clared. "  Ghulam  is  altogether  trustworthy.  I 
am  most  anxious  to  get  to  Munghier  as  soon  as 
possible.  I  fear  a  life  may  be  at  stake." 

Thus  urged,  the  young  man  spurred  his  horse 
and  rode  away  in  the  dark.  Everything  was  soon 
blotted  from  view  by  the  inky  blackness.  The 
rain  continued  to  pour  down.  But  for  the  aid  of 
an  electric  flashlight  that  Lockland  had  with  him, 
he  could  not  have  kept  the  road.  An  hour  later 
he  reached  the  river.  From  afar  he  had  heard  the 
rush  of  the  torrent  above  the  noise  of  wind  and 
rain.  The  sound  had  not  reassured  him. 

He  saw  no  boatmen,  but  found  a  clumsy,  flat- 
boat  drawn  up  on  the  river  bank.  It  did  not 
commend  itself  to  him  as  a  very  suitable  craft 
for  the  navigation  of  such  waters.  He  would 
find  its  owners,  if  possible,  and  discover  what 
sort  of  oarsmen  they  were. 

"  Koi  hai!     Koi  hai! "  he  called  repeatedly. 

At  length  there  was  a  muffled  answer.  A  light 
shone  dimly  through  the  door  of  a  hut  not  far 
away.  Then  three  men  came  out  to  him. 

Lockland  was  far  from  proficient  in  Hindi.   He 


266  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

had  been  in  several  language  areas  since  coming 
to  India.  His  special  work  had  been  with  Euro- 
peans. He  could  talk  but  little,  and  understood 
less.  His  halting  inquiries  elicited  replies  whose 
volubility  conveyed  to  him  no  idea.  By  dint  of 
telling  the  men  he  knew  little  of  their  tongue,  and 
having  them  repeat  things  many  times,  he  finally 
caught  the  main  points  of  their  talk. 

The  water  was  very  great.  The  river  had  risen 
since  they  crossed,  and  was  continuing  to  rise. 
They  could  not  recross  until  it  fell.  Their  boat 
would  be  destroyed.  They  and  the  Doctor  Miss 
Sahib  would  be  drowned.  Such  was  their  de- 
cision. 

Lockland  would  feign  have  let  the  case  rest 
there.  He  cared  to  trust  neither  boat  nor  boat- 
men in  such  a  current.  Yet  he  dared  not  agree 
with  the  men.  He  was  under  orders.  He  knew 
the  dauntless  spirit  of  the  young  woman  who 
thought  it  her  duty  to  proceed  at  once.  If  his 
speech  was  not  fluent  it  was  forcible.  He  would 
give  them  much  money ;  he  showed  them  a  hand- 
ful of  rupees  and  some  gold.  He  could  row;  he 
would  help  them.  There  was  great  need.  The 
Miss  Sahib  would  go  at  once  to  save  life.  Thus 
he  overbore  them,  and  urged  and  almost  drove 
them  to  prepare  to  cross. 

As  a  first  step,  the  men  started  to  build  a  fire 


'Really,  you  ought  not  to  try  to  cross  tonight  in  the 
miserable  scow  they  have  here." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  267 

at  the  water's  edge.  An  opportune  abatement  of 
the  downpour  made  it  possible.  Lockland  could 
not  perceive  the  utility  of  such  a  step  until  he 
saw  an  answering  light  on  the  distant  opposite 
shore.  Then  he  understood.  He  hoped  that  the 
rain  would  not  begin  again  and  blot  out  those 
guiding  stars.  It  might  be  well  to  have  two  fires 
to  depend  on.  "  Make  another  fire.  Make  an- 
other fire,"  he  commanded  the  men. 

They  demurred,  trying  to  explain  that  the  one 
they  had  made  was  only  as  a  signal  to  have  the 
guiding  blaze  kindled  on  the  other  side.  Lock- 
land  could  neither  understand  their  objections, 
nor  make  known  the  reasons  for  his  order.  He 
reiterated  his  command.  The  men,  with  mut- 
tered maledictions'  upon  the  '  Mad  Sahib/ 
started  another  fire  a  little  way  down  the  stream. 
They  then  had  nothing  to  do  but  await  the  arrival 
of  the  Doctor. 

Soon  the  light  of  the  cart  was  seen  approach- 
ing. In  a  few  minutes  more  it  had  halted  near 
the  blazing  fires.  Lockland  hurried  forward  to 
assist  Miss  Emmett  to  alight. 

"  Really,  you  ought  not  to  try  to  cross  tonight 
in  the  miserable  scow  they  have  here.  Come  to 
the  edge  of  the  water  and  look  and  listen." 

What  Esther  saw  and  heard  made  even  her 
strong  heart  quail.  Even  better  than  the  man,  she 


268  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

knew  the  perils  of  trying  to  cross.  Near  the 
banks  on  each  side  they  might  be  entangled  in  the 
tops  of  submerged  trees.  Out  in  the  current, 
there  was  danger  of  collision  with  huge  logs  driv- 
ing swiftly  down  stream. 

"  I  have  heard  the  people  about  here  tell  of 
the  wonderful  club  and  rope  of  the  Rakshasi.  If 
one  has  them,  and  says,  *  O  stout  club !  O  strong 
rope !  Take  me  at  once  to  the  other  side ! '  the 
widest  waters  can  be  instantly  crossed.  I  wish 
we  had  them  here."  She  spoke  with  a  little 
nervous  laugh. 

"  Do  wait  till  morning,  Dr.  Emmett,"  urged 
the  man.  "  Why  rush  to  almost  certain  death  on 
the  chance  of  helping  a  woman  who  may  be  much 
better  or  dead." 

It  was  the  wrong  kind  of  appeal  to  make.  The 
picture  of  the  poor,  suffering  Mrs.  Dickson  and 
her  anxious,  helpless  husband  arose  before  the 
girl  and  blotted  out  the  wild  waste  of  waters.  It 
was  the  physician  and  not  the  young  woman  that 
spoke  next. 

"  I  must  go  on.  The  water  is  rising  and  may 
be  far  worse  to-morrow.  That  poor  woman  was 
desperately  ill  five  days  ago.  Let  us  start." 

Lockland  realized  that  further  words  would  be 
useless.  He  used  Esther  as  interpreter  for  his 
directions  for  the  journey.  The  driver  must  find 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  269 

accommodations  for  the  horse  and  oxen  and  wait 
their  return.  Dickson's  servant  must  remain  on 
the  river  bank  and  keep  up  the  fires  until  a 
second  fire  was  seen  on  the  other  side.  Esther 
was  to  sit  in  the  bow  of  the  boat  with  the  flash- 
light, and  look  out  for  danger.  One  boatman 
would  manage  the  rudder.  The  other  two  would 
pull  one  pair  of  oars.  Lockland  would  take  the 
other  pair  himself.  So  they  took  their  places  in 
the  clumsy  craft  and  pushed  off. 

For  the  first  few  yards,  all  went  well.  Then 
they  got  among  the  half  submerged  trees,  and, 
later,  among  the  tree  tops.  The  native  oarsmen 
became  excited.  They  could  not  pull  together, 
much  less  with  Lockland.  The  Englishman's 
effort  to  give  them  orders  only  increased  their 
confusion.  At  Esther's  suggestion  he  adopted 
the  plan  of  giving  his  commands  in  English  and 
letting  the  girl  interpret  them.  But  they  con- 
tinued to  foul  their  oars.  Even  the  steersman 
lost  his  head  and  fumbled  with  the  rudder  in  an 
imbecile  way.  In  a  little  while,  they  stuck  in  a 
tree  top  where  some  driftwood  had  already 
lodged. 

The  crew  then  threatened  to  mutiny.  They 
would  go  no  further.  Lockland  thought  that  not 
improbable  from  the  way  the  boat  was  caught. 
He  wisely  forbore  to  argue  with  them  until  they 


270  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

should  get  free.  Notwithstanding  hard  work 
skilfully  directed,  it  took  twenty  minutes  to  ex- 
tricate themselves.  Meanwhile  the  rain  had  be- 
gun to  pour  down  steadily  again.  The  men  were 
for  putting  the  boat  about.  Esther  insisted  on 
proceeding,  so  Lockland  threatened  to  knock 
overboard  the  first  man  who  should  disobey  him. 
So  they  sullenly  set  to  work  once  more. 

They  seemed  clear  of  the  trees.  Esther  was 
helping  the  oarsmen  pull  together  by  marking 
time  for  them.  But  to  look  out  for  floating  tim- 
bers and  continue  her  sing-song  directions  was  a 
problem  in  double  attention  beyond  her  powers. 
There  was  soon  a  collision  with  a  great  log  that 
unseated  the  passengers  and  nearly  upset  the 
boat.  All  three  of  the  natives  sprang  to  their 
feet  with  cries  of  terror.  The  boat  whirled 
around  like  a  top,  and  started  down  stream. 
When  commands  and  threats  got  the  wretched 
boatmen  quiet  again,  it  was  found  they  had  lost 
both  their  oars.  Esther  was  always  sure  that 
Lockland  then  growled  out  words  not  lawful  for 
man  to  utter.  In  the  emergency  he  decided  to 
make  a  change  in  the  disposition  of  his  crew.  He 
assisted  Esther  to  the  helmsman's  seat,  for  she 
had  kept  cool  and  could  be  trusted.  The  man 
who  had  steered  was  sent  to  the  bow  as  lookout. 
The  other  two  were  told  to  keep  quiet  where  they 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  271 

were  and  look  sharply  about  them.  Lockland 
would  do  the  rowing.  By  that  time,  they  were 
far  out  of  their  course.  The  heavy  rain  had 
drenched  them.  Worse  than  that,  it  had  either 
drowned  the  signal  fires,  or  they  were  now  too 
far  away  to  be  seen.  There  remained  nothing  for 
it,  but  to  pull  obliquely  against  the  stream,  in  the 
hope  of  making  a  landing  somewhere.  The  craft 
was  heavy  and  the  current  was1  strong,  but  Lock- 
land's  former  training  in  his  college  boating  crew 
stood  him  in  good  stead.  His  powerful  strokes 
were  driving  them  somewhere  through  the  dark- 
ness. 

"  Shout,"  he  ordered  the  men  after  a  time. 

They  did  so  right  lustily.  There  was  no  re- 
sponse. 

"  Friends  probably  went  home  after  it  got  too 
wet  for  the  fires,"  Lockland  commented,  and 
pulled  on. 

"  Get  up  and  wave  the  light,"  he  commanded 
the  man  at  the  bow,  a  little  later.  There  was  no 
answering  signal. 

"  Everybody  in  the  ghastly  country  asleep  or 
drowned,"  muttered  the  oarsman. 

Repeated  calls  and  signals,  from  time  to  time, 
finally  were  rewarded  by  an  answering  shout  at 
some  distance  ahead.  That  was  encouraging, 
and  the  young  man  redoubled  his  efforts. 


272  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Then  there  was  a  mighty  crash.  It  was  fol- 
lowed by  another,  and  another.  The  man  stand- 
ing in  the  bow  disappeared  overboard.  The  boat 
was  being  crushed  among  a  lot  of  floating  logs. 

"  Jump !  Swim !"  Lockland  shouted  to  the  two 
remaining  men. 

"  The  beastly  craft  is  done  for,  Miss  Emmett," 
he  said.  "  We  must  get  out  of  it." 

In  a  moment  they  were  both  in  the  water.  The 
man  had  thrown  one  arm  over  a  log.  With  the 
other  he  was  holding  up  the  girl. 

"  I  can  swim,"  said  the  Doctor. 

"Not  with  all  your  wet  clothing,  and  not 
among  these  logs,"  he  answered.  "  We  better 
keep  by  this  log  for  protection  from  others. 
We'll  see  what  will  happen  directly." 

Someone  was  shouting  ahead  at  no  great  dis- 
tance. Whether  it  was  one  of  the  men  in  the 
water,  or  somebody  on  the  shore,  could  not  be 
told.  But  the  current  was  not  very  swift,  so 
they  must  be  nearing  the  banks. 

Suddenly  Lockland  uttered  a  cry  of  pain  an'd 
relaxed  his  hold  upon  the  log.  His  arm  had  been 
caught  and  crushed  by  another  log.  As  the  log 
floated  off  he  and  his  burden  sank.  When  he 
came  to  the  surface,  a  piece  of  driftwood  struck 
his  head,  and  he  knew  no  more. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  273 

The  Doctor  never  had  a  very  clear  recollection 
of  what  followed.  Instinctively,  she  seized  the 
sinking  man's  hair  and  made  an  effort  to  strike 
out.  The  next  thing  she  remembered  was  find- 
ing herself  caught  in  the  topmost  branches  of  a 
tree.  There  she  contrived  to  draw  herself  and 
the  man  partly  out  of  the  water  upon  the  branches 
and  entangled  debris1. 

Was  Lockland  dead?  Had  she  caused  him  to 
lose  his  life  by  that  rash  voyage  in  the  darkness? 
She  felt  for  his  heart. 

"  Thank  God !  he  is  only  stunned !"  she  cried, 
overjoyed  to  find  his  heart  beating. 

She  also  felt  his  injured  arm  and  found  it  was 
not  broken,  though  badly  hurt.  Hoping  to  get 
aid,  she  cried  out  at  the  top  of  her  voice.  There 
was  a  reply,  but  at  some  distance.  When  she 
called  again,  Lockland  stirred. 

"  They  are  answering,"  he  muttered.  "  We 
must  be  near  shore." 

Don't  try  to  move  or  you  may  slip  into  the 
water  and  drown,"  commanded  Esther. 

"  Where  are  we?  "  he  asked,  feeling  about  in 
the  darkness. 

"  Caught  in  the  tree,"  she  replied. 

"  By  Jove !  "  cried  the  man,  pulling  himself  to- 
gether, "  I  have  made  a  mess  of  it." 


274  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  You  did  nobly.  It  was  not  your  fault  the 
boat  capsized,  or  that  you  were  hit  by  those  logs," 
said  the  girl. 

His  head  was  hurting,  and  so  was  his  arm. 
Fortunately  they  were  comparatively  safe  where 
they  were,  for  he  was  incapable  of  much  exertion. 

"  I  am  sure  I  shall  never  forgive  myself  for 
causing  all  this  trouble,"  said  Esther  contritely. 

11  Oh,  never  mind  about  that,"  he  replied  mag- 
nanimously, "  You  could  not  foresee  all  this,  and 
the  case  was  urgent." 

"  I  hope  those  poor  natives  were  not  drowned." 

"  They  probably  got  through  all  right,"  Lock- 
land  answered  reassuringly.  "  They  are  used  to 
paddling  around  in  the  water." 

"  Let's  call  for  help,"  he  added  after  a  moment. 

Their  loud  calls  again  brought  a  response.  It 
did  not  seem  so  very  far  away.  Certainly  the 
shore  could  not  be  very  distant  or  the  tree  would 
not  be  above  water.  The  rain  had  slackened 
again.  Darkness,  however,  was  all  encompass- 
ing. 

"  If  somebody  would  make  a  big  fire  on  the 
banks,  we  might  see  how  to  get  out  of  this.  It 
must  be  hours  yet  till  day."  Lockland  was 
grumbling  at  things  in  good  English  fashion. 

He  called  aloud,  again  and  again,  for  some  one, 
to  start  a  fire.  Esther  thought  she  could  at 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  275 

length  distinguish  an  answering — "  Baliut  Ac- 
chcha." 

After  the  lapse  of  what  seemed  an  interminable 
while,  flames  were  seen  to  dart  upward  into  the 
night  only  a  few  hundred  yards  away.  As  they 
rose  higher  and  increased  in  volume,  the  anxious 
watchers  could  distinguish  men  moving  about. 

Esther  then  gave  Lockland  various  sentences 
to  shout  out  in  his  strong  voice.  The  men  were 
entreated  to  come  to  the  rescue.  Large  back- 
sheesh  was  promised  for  aid.  The  waters  were 
quiet.  They  were  not  far  away. 

"  Ata,  Sahib,  Ata"  Esther  heard  at  last. 

"  They  say  they  are  coming,"  she  said. 

"  Well  I'll  keep  shouting  to  guide  them  and  en- 
courage them  too." 

They  could  see  a  boat  being  dragged  into  the 
water.  Men  with  a  lantern  were  getting  into  it. 
Slowly,  slowly,  the  lantern  moved  towards  them. 
They  devoutly  hoped  the  boat  would  not  get  fast 
in  the  tree  tops.  It  got  within  easy  hailing  dis- 
tance. Esther  then  took  up  the  work  of  en- 
couragement, which  soon  passed  into  conversa- 
tion. 

"  Did  the  three  boatmen  get  to  the  shore?  " 
she  called. 

"  Yes,  all  three,  and  not  hurt,"  they  answered. 

The  boat  was  beside  their  diminutive  desert 


276  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

isle.  Assisted  by  the  boatmen  they  clambered 
in. 

"  Safe  at  last,"  cried  Esther,  and  there  was  a 
suspicion  of  tears  in  her  voice. 

Wet,  cold,  faint,  they  stepped  ashore  in  the 
glow  of  the  fire-light.  Five  hours  had  passed  since 
they  left  the  other  bank. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  277 


CHAPTER  XVI 

FAINTING  BY  THE  WAY 

AFTER  George  Dickson  had  sent  the  messenger 
for  Dr.  Emmett,  he  had  gone  back  to  his  wife's 
bedside  to  watch  there.  If  all  went  well  the 
doctor  might  arrive  next  day.  The  man  sighed 
as  he  looked  at  his  wife's  flushed,  pain-drawn 
face  and  watched  her  restless  tossing  upon  the 
bed.  Even  two  more  days  without  help  might  be 
a  serious  matter.  What  if  the  river  should  be 
impassable,  or  the  Doctor  away  from  home?1 
Could  the  frail  form  before  him  endure  for  a  week 
the  inward  fire  that  was  consuming  her? 

The  next  day  wore  on  to  a  close,  but  no  help 
arrived.  By  the  end  of  another  day,  word  came 
by  some  men  who  had  just  entered  the  town,  that 
the  river  was  raging,  so  that  none  dared  attempt 
to  cross  it.  Dickson  groaned  aloud  when  he 
heard  it.  The  sound  seemed  to  arouse  his  wife. 
She  opened  her  eyes  and  looked  around  rather 
wildly. 

"  Mother,"  she  said  weakly,  "  please  give  me  a 


278  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

little  ice.  You  know  you  always  let  me  have  ice 
when  I'm  sick." 

In  her  delirium  she  evidently  thought  herself 
at  home  with  her  mother  once  more. 

"  No  ice,  no  mother,  no  doctor — nothing  but 
suffering  and  death  here,"  the  man  thought  bit- 
terly. 

He  took  a  clinical  thermometer  and  shook  the 
mercury  down  below  the  normal  point.  Putting 
it  between  his  wife's  lips,  he  knelt  by  the  bed, 
patiently  counting  the  wild  pulse  beats,  while  the 
thermometer  was  registering  the  temperature. 
It  had  been  a  hundred  and  four  degrees  for  some 
days.  Yesterday  it  was  a  hundred  and  five.  To- 
day— yes,  his  anxious  scrutiny  of  the  little  in- 
strument showed  that  it  had  mounted  a  trifle 
above  one  hundred  and  six. 

"  Oh,  God  have  mercy !  "  he  cried,  looking  help- 
lessly about. 

He  knew  little  of  fevers,  but  he  remembered 
hearing  that  it  would  not  take  long  for  the  life 
to  burn  out  at  such  a  temperature. 

Save  for  the  ayah,  faithful  but  inefficient,  who 
looked  after  the  child,  he  was  alone  with  the  in- 
valid. Of  the  simple  remedies  at  hand,  he  had 
used  in  vain  all  he  dared.  What  to  do  next  he 
knew  not,  yet  he  felt  that  something  must  be 
done  soon  or  never. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  279 

A  thought  came  to  him.  Had  he  ever  heard  of 
such  a  thing?  Or  was  it  a  new  idea?  It  seemed 
reasonable.  He  would  try  it  anyway. 

Stepping  to  the  door  he  called  the  ayah.  She 
came  quickly,  with  his  little  daughter  toddling 
along  behind  her.  At  his  bidding  she  helped  him 
bring  the  large  tub  from  the  bathroom  and  place 
it  by  the  bed. 

"  Call  the  mali  to  bring  fresh  water  from  the 
well,  quickly." 

The  woman  hurried  wonderingly  out  to  give 
the  order  to  the  gardener. 

By  the  time  the  bath  was  nearly  filled  Dick- 
son  had  his  wife  ready.  He  tried  to  make  her 
understand  what  he  was  going  to  do,  but  with  ill 
success.  Wrapping  a  blanket  about  her,  with  the 
help  of  the  now  reluctant  ayah,  he  lifted  the 
patient  from  the  bed  and  laid  her  down  in  the 
water.  As  her  hot  body  sank  under  the  cold 
water,  the  woman  screamed  and  tried  to  resist. 

"  Oh,  Sahib,"  cried  the  terrified  ayah,  "  you 
will  surely  kill  my  good  Mem  Sahib." 

The  little  girl  also  looked  frightened  and  cried 
aloud. 

"  Naughty  Papa,  naughty  Papa,  to  hurt  my 
sick  Mamma  so,"  she  said  between  her  sobs  and 
cries. 

Dickson,    fearful    yet    desperate,    persisted. 


28o  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

After  the  first  shock  the  patient  bore  it  better. 
The  cold  had  aroused  her  from  her  delirium,  and 
she  understood  when  her  husband  explained 
what  he  was  doing.  He  kept  testing  her  tempera- 
ture till  it  fell  to  one  hundred  and  four.  Then 
he  lifted  her  out,  and  got  her  back  into  bed. 

The  experiment  seemed  beneficial.  With 
lowered  temperature  the  patient  rested  better. 
Therefore,  through  the  long  days  and  longer 
nights  of  hope  deferred,  again  and  again  was  the 
cold  bath  resorted  to.  Supplemented  by  wet 
cloths  and  a  rubber  bottle  filled  with  cold  water 
kept  constantly  on  her  head,  the  fever  was  held 
somewhat  at  bay.  Yet  the  sufferer  daily 
weakened. 

Would  help  never  come?  It  was  the  sixth  day 
since  he  had  sent  his  servant  to  bring  the  Doctor. 
He  had  heard  occasionally  that  the  man  was  not 
able  to  get  across  the  river.  From  the  steady 
downpour  of  rain,  he  had  little  hope  that  the 
waters  would  soon  abate.  Worn  and  almost 
hopeless  from  anxiety  and  loss  of  rest,  the  poor 
fellow  sank  into  a  chair,  and  fell  asleep  in  spite  of 
himself. 

"  Koi  hai!" 

Dickson  started  up.  Had  he  been  dreaming,  or 
did  he  really  hear  a  woman  calling  before  the 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  281 

bungalow?  Rushing  out  upon  the  veranda  he 
saw  first  his  bullock-cart,  then  a  tall,  strange 
man  with  his  right  arm  bandaged  and  in  a  sling, 
and  then  Dr.  Emmett.  His  knees  almost  gave 
way  beneath  him  from  excess  of  relief  and  joy. 

"  Thank  God  you  have  come/'  he  cried  fer- 
vently as  he  shook  hands  with  the  Doctor. 

"  This  is  my  friend  and  protector,  Mr.  Lock- 
land,"  said  Esther,  introducing  the  two  men. 
And  then,  "How  is  our  patient?  " 

"  Bad  enough  I  fear,  but  come  and  see,"  an- 
swered the  husband. 

It  was  such  a  comfort  to  see  a  woman  at  his 
wife's  bedside.  Through  a  mist  of  thankful 
tears  he  watched  her  as  she  felt  pulse  and  brow, 
listened  to  the  sick  woman's  heart-beats,  and  skil- 
fully sounded  with  gentle  finger  raps  over  the 
abdomen.  Then  she  straightened  the  covers,  and 
with  womanly  gentleness  smoothed  back  the  suf- 
ferer's hair.  As  she  turned  from  the  bed,  read- 
ing the  thermometer,  she  was  ready  to  question 
the  man. 

Her  head  nodded  approval  at  this  and  that 
item  of  information.  When  he  told  how  high 
the  fever  had  ranged,  of  his  fears,  and  of  his 
expedient  for  reducing  it,  the  Doctor  was  lavish 
in  her  praise. 


282  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  You  have  probably  saved  her  life,  Mr.  Dick- 
son.  Had  I  been  here  I  could  have  done  little 
more." 

Upon  request,  the  family  supply  of  medicine 
was  brought  out.  The  Doctor  had  lost  all  hers 
in  the  river. 

"  You  have  here  all  I  shall  need  for  the 
present,"  she  said.  "  This  is  a  case  for  nursing 
rather  than  doctoring  just  now." 

"  Is  it  enteric?  "  the  man  asked  anxiously. 

"  No,  I  see  no  typhoid  symptoms,"  Esther  re- 
plied. "  It  is  probably  malaria  working  upon  a 
constitution  weakened  by  nervous  strain." 

Everything  seemed  so  much  better  than  he  had 
feared.  He  felt  almost  cheerful. 

"  Please  have  some  fresh  water  brought," 
Esther  requested.  "  I  want  to  see  whether  we  can 
use  a  modification  of  your  fever  bath.  I  wish  we 
tiad  some  ice." 

An  idle  wish  in  that  place,  though  ice  was  plen- 
tiful in  the  large  cities.  Years  before  it  used  to 
be  brought  by  the  shipload  from  America.  It 
was  a  notable  occasion  when  a  ship  was  unload- 
ing at  Calcutta.  Great  ice  houses  stood  upon  the 
site  now  occupied  by  the  building  of  the  Court  of 
Small  Causes.  It  is  a  pity  that  cooling  breezes 
from  those  bygone  days  do  not  yet  linger  about 
the  spot  to  allay  the  heat  of  the  endless  petty 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  283 

litigation  between  servants  and  masters,  debtors 
and  creditors  there  constantly  aided  and  abetted 
by  cheap  native  lawyers.  In  modern  days,  how- 
ever, ice  is  manufactured  and  sold  in  India  about 
as  cheaply  as  in  America.  Even  small  places 
along  the  railways  can  get  it  from  every  pas- 
senger train  during  the  hot  weather.  There  is 
always  a  compartment  devoted  to  a  vendor  of 
bottled  mineral  water  and  ice.  But  it  could  not 
be  had  in  Munghier.  Nor  could  it  well  be  con- 
veyed there  from  Mungalpore  at  such  a  time. 
Even  yet,  all  the  hardships  of  pioneer  days  in 
India  linger  about  many  isolated  stations. 

When  the  water  came  fresh  from  the  well,  the 
Doctor  was  pleased  to  find  how  cool  it  was. 
Thereafter,  they  used  the  modern  fever  bath,  that 
consists  in  an  application  of  cold  over  the  heart 
and  the  abdomen  and  upon  the  head. 

Meanwhile,  Lockland  was  waiting  in  the  draw- 
ing-room alone.  Aside  from  a  slight  scalp  wound 
and  a  temporarily  disabled  arm,  he  was  not  much 
the  worse  for  wear  from  the  rough  experiences  of 
the  previous  night. 

When  he  and  the  Doctor  had  reached  the  shore 
they  had  been  immediately  beset  by  the  three 
hapless  boatmen.  They  demanded  pay  for  their 
lost  craft,  their  services  and  their  hardships. 
The  man  who  had  been  knocked  overboard  seemed 


284  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

to  think  he  had  a  claim  for  indemnity  above  his 
fellows  who  had  leaped  from  the  sinking  boat. 

"  Tell  the  knave  it  served  him  jolly  well  right 
to  get  knocked  overboard,  for  not  looking  out  and 
warning  us  of  the  danger,"  said  Lockland  to 
Esther  as  they  pushed  through  the  crowd  up  to 
the  fire. 

Esther  at  once  examined  Lockland's  head,  and 
found  that  it  needed  no  care.  Then  she  bandaged 
his  arm  as  best  she  could  with  their  handker- 
chiefs and  strips  torn  from  his  wet  shirt-sleeves. 

There  were  some  huts  near  by.  In  the  best  of 
them  Esther  sought  shelter.  There  she  borrowed 
some  saris  from  the  women.  Exchanging  her  wet 
garments  for  them,  she  lay  down  on  a  cot  to  rest 
until  her  clothing  could  be  dried.  The  women 
took  the  wet  things  out  to  the  fire.  The  men 
in  a  neighboring  hut  were  performing  like  kindly 
offices  for  Lockland.  By  morning  the  weary 
travelers  were  considerably  refreshed,  after  a 
good  rubbing  and  several  hours'  sleep.  Their 
clothing  was  dry.  Dickson's  bullock-cart  had 
been  made  ready.  They  liberally  rewarded  all 
who  had  aided  them,  and  set  out  upon  the  last 
long  stretch  of  their  muddy  journey. 

Sitting  alone  in  the  bungalow,  after  the  hard 
and  perilous  journey  was  over,  Lockland  looked 
back  upon  it  with  very  mixed  feelings.  His  al- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  285 

ready  high  admiration  and  respect  for  Esther 
Emmett  had  been  increased  by  her  coolness  and 
courage.  He  was  devoutly  thankful  he  had  been 
with  her  to  help  her.  But  he  thought  ruefully 
that  he  must  have  appeared  to  her  in  rather  an 
unfavorable  light  for  the  bungling  way  he  con- 
ducted matters.  After  all,  it  had  been  she  who 
had  saved  his  life;  he  had  not  saved  hers.  Would 
she  not  dislike  him  more  than  ever?  It  was  a 
torturing  thought  for  the  man  who  had  vainly 
loved  her  for  months. 

At  dinner  that  evening,  however,  Esther  was 
warm  in  her  praise  of  Lockland.  She  assured 
Dickson  that  she  could  not  have  got  there  if  he 
had  not  compelled  the  men  to  start.  She  de- 
clared she  would  inevitably  have  been  drowned  if 
he  had  not  managed  the  boat  so  admirably.  Lock- 
land  blushed  like  a  girl,  and  stammered  dis- 
claimers at  Esther's  praise  and  Dickson's  warm 
ttianks.  It  made  him  more  happy  and  hopeful 
though. 

The  next  day  he  set  out  for  Mungalpore.  He 
could  be  of  little  help  to  Dickson  by  remaining. 
The  Doctor  was  anxious  to  have  some  medicine 
and  a  food  preparation  sent  her  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible. There  had  been  no  heavy  rain  since  they 
had  crossed  the  river.  Passage  would  probably 
be  easier  by  daylight.  So  he  bade  Esther  good- 


286  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

bye,  and  set  out  to  retrace  his  steps.  It  was  with 
difficulty  that  he  forbore  to  press  his  suit  again  as 
he  was  leaving  Esther.  Her  manner  toward  him 
had  seemed  so  changed  and  kindly.  They  were 
alone  at  parting.  Yet  he  could  not  bring  himself 
to  speak.  No  doubt  it  was  well. 

"  Tell  Miss  Everest  to  be  a  good  girl  and  take 
care  of  everything  until  I  get  back,"  the  Doc- 
tor called  to  Lockland  as  he  drove  away. 

Mabel  had  become  one  of  the  most  valuable  as- 
sistants the  Doctor  had.  She  had  learned  many 
things  about  the  hospital  and  dispensary.  With 
constant  attendance  upon  Esther,  and  receiving 
much  instruction  from  her,  she  had  even  ac- 
quired considerable  skill  in  administering  reme- 
dies and  caring  for  the  sick.  She  was  the  Doc- 
tor's only  white  assistant,  and  next  to  that  lady 
herself,  was  held  in  honor  by  the  natives  who 
needed  medical  treatment.  Particularly  while 
the  Doctor  was  absent  did  assistants  and  patients 
look  to  Mabel  for  direction  and  help. 

A  day  or  two  after  Lockland's  return  to  the 
station  he  came  into  the  hospital  one  evening,  ac- 
companied by  a  wealthy  native  landowner  from  a 
neighboring  town.  They  were  looking  for  Mabel. 

"  Miss  Everest,"  said  Lockland,  "  this  chap 
says  he  must  speak  with  you  on  an  urgent  mat- 
ter." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  287 

"  Madam,  you  are  the  great  and  good  Doctor, 
and  I  seek  your  aid,"  the  man  said,  bowing  low. 

"  No,  the  Doctor  is  not  here,"  Mabel  replied. 

"  But,"  said  the  landowner,  "  you  too  are  a 
doctor  of  rare  skill  and  can  help  me." 

"  What  is  it  you  wish?  "  the  girl  asked. 

"  It  is  many  days  since  my  wife  was  taken  ill. 
She  can  get  no  relief.  I  beg  you  to  come  to  my 
house  and  heal  her.  I  will  pay  the  madam  well," 
was  the  reply. 

After  learning  all  she  could  of  the  case,  and  the 
way  to  reach  the  man's  house,  Mabel  agreed  to 
take  a  native  doctor  with  her  next  day,  and  do 
what  she  could  for  the  sick  woman. 

They  left  by  the  five  o'clock  train  next  morning. 
It  was  ten  o'clock  when  they  reached  the  man's 
house.  Mabel  felt  rather  faint  from  hunger,  and 
asked  for  a  glass  of  milk  before  going  into  the 
patient's  apartments. 

11  Has  it  been  boiled?  "  she  inquired  of  the  ser- 
vant who  brought  it. 

He  assured  her  it  had.  A  sip  of  it  convinced 
her  that  he  told  the  truth.  Milk  and  water  are 
two  things  about  which  it  is  necessary  to  be  very 
cautious  in  India. 

When  the  two  medical  women  entered  the  sick 
woman's  room,  they  found  her  rather  weak,  but 
not  very  seriously  ill.  Evidently  she  had  a  fever 


288  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

from  a  bad  cold.  It  was  no  difficult  matter  for 
the  native  doctor  to  decide  upon  remedies,  and 
recommendations  as  to  diet  and  the  like,  that 
restored  her  to  health  after  a  few  days.  They 
returned  the  same  evening  to  Mungalpore,  well 
paid  by  the  grateful  husband. 

That  night  Mabel  and  Jennie  Pierce  had  a 
pleasant  chat  together  before  retiring.  They 
were  both  congratulating  themselves  that  they 
had  kept  so  well  during  all  the  terrible  year.  As 
they  went  to  bed,  Mabel  called  through  the  open, 
curtained  doors  between  their  room — 

"  Oh,  but  the  bed  feels  good  to-night.  I  didn't 
know  how  tired  I  was  until  I  lay  down." 

"  Well,  have  a  good  sleep,  and  you  will  be 
rested  by  morning."  Miss  Pierce  had  called 
back. 

Early  next  morning  Dr.  Emmett  came  over  to 
the  bungalow.  She  had  got  in  late  the  evening 
before  and  gone  to  her  own  bungalow  by  the  hos- 
pital. Mrs.  Dickson  was  well  enough  to  be  left 
with  one  of  the  nurses  who  had  gone  out  from 
the  hospital.  She  was  now  anxious  to  see  her 
friends. 

"  Wake  up  there,"  she  cried,  pulling  the  pillow 
from  under  Jennie  Pierce's  head.  "  Is  this  the 
way  you  sleep  away  the  hours  when  I  am  not  here 
to  keep  you  in  order?  " 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  289 

"  Oh,  it  is  so  good  to  have  you  back  again," 
said  the  good-natured  Jennie,  forgetting  about 
her  disturbed  slumbers  in  the  joy  of  seeing  her 
friend. 

After  talking  awhile,  the  Doctor  said  she  must 
go  see  Mabel. 

"  Don't  waken  her,"  pleaded  Jennie,  "  she  had 
a  hard  day  yesterday,  and  went  to  bed  very  tired. 
I  hope  she  can  sleep  late." 

"  All  right,  I'll  just  have  a  peep  at  her  then." 

The  doctor  went  softly  to  the  door  and  pulled 
aside  the  curtain.  Then  she  tip-toed  up  to  the 
bed  and  peered  through  the  mosquito  netting 
at  the  face  of  her  friend.  The  wealth  of  golden 
brown  hair  made  a  halo  about  the  head  upon  the 
pillow.  The  half-averted  face  showed  a  perfect 
profile.  The  Doctor  saw  the  beauty  of  it  all,  but 
her  skillful  eye  saw  something  more.  The  face 
was  deathly  white.  With  a  low  cry  Esther  tore 
aside  the  netting. 

"  What  is  it?  "  Jennie  Pierce  asked,  rushing 
into  the  room  in  terror. 

"  Cholera,"  said  the  Doctor  in  a  shaken  voice. 
She  added,  "  It  will  be  death  soon  unless  we 
hurry." 

It  was  true.  So  suddenly  that  she  had  no  op- 
portunity to  call  out  to  her  friend  in  the  adjoin- 
ing room,  Mabel  had  been  seized  in  the  night  by 


290  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

the  dread  destroyer.  Later  on,  it  was  learned 
that  the  foe  had  been  lurking  in  the  milk  drunk 
the  day  before.  It  had  been  boiled  indeed,  but 
when  the  servant  had  poured  it  into  the  glass, 
there  was  not  enough  to  fill  it.  Unwilling  to  give 
an  unfilled  glass  to  a  guest,  he  had  quickly  poured 
water  into  it.  That  water  was  unboiled  and  con- 
taminated. 

The  Doctor  began  her  work  at  once.  Chloro- 
dyne  was  at  hand,  and  was  immediately  adminis- 
tered. In  bath  robe  and  slippers  Jennie  Pierce 
was  sent  running  to  the  hospital  for  Rubini's 
camphor,  and  other  remedies  and  appliances.  If 
skill  and  work  and  prayer  could  save,  Mabel 
would  be  saved.  None  could  tell  what  the  issue 
would  be. 

Out  in  the  orphanage  where  the  older  girls 
were  busy  with  cooking  and  housework  for  all,  the 
news  of  Mabel's  illness  spread.  Long  ago,  the 
loveliness  of  the  gracious  girl  had  impressed  those 
little  waifs  with  their  Oriental  susceptibility  to 
beauty.  '  Khubsurat  Bibi,  Beautiful  Lady,' 
they  began  secretly  to  call  her.  The  name  had 
passed  on  to  the  servants,  and  hospital  patients, 
and  so  to  the  missionaries1.  She  was  known  far 
and  near  by  no  other  name. 

After  the  breakfast,  when  Miss  Best  was  con- 
ducting morning  worship  in  the  orphanage,  she 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  291 

offered  a  petition  for  the  recovery  of  the  one  of 
their  number  who  was  ill.  In  the  pause  that  fol- 
lowed, one  of  the  larger  girls  interjected. 

"  Yes,  God,  make  well  the  Khubsurat  Bibi." 
Others  took  up  the  petition.  At  first  they 
spoke  calmly,  one  by  one.  But  with  growing 
earnestness  several  were  soon  speaking  at  once. 
Then  the  smaller  children  caught  the  excitement 
and  began  the  mournful  wailing  that  the  people 
of  the  land  use  in  times  of  desolation.  After 
that,  the  petitions  were  offered  to  many  gods  and 
demons  whose  names  are  strange  to  Christian 
ears.  For  a  while  even  prim  Miss  Best  let  them 
give  vent  to  their  grief  and  sincere  desires.  If 
deities  were  invoked  who  could  not  help,  they  at 
Itast  could  not  hinder  the  fervent  petitions  in 
their  flight  to  the  God  of  all.  At  last  she  quieted 
and  comforted  the  children,  and  sent  them  to 
their  lessons  with  assurances  that  the  Good 
Father  would  do  what  was  best  for  their  Khub- 
surat Bibi. 

At  neighboring  temples  and  shrines  that  day 
many  offerings  of  food  and  flowers  were  made  to 
grotesque  idols  in  behalf  of  the  Beautiful  Lady. 
In  all  the  roads  were  seen  leaves  daubed  with  red 
paint  and  lime  and  other  things,  in  the  hope  that 
sympathetic  magic  would  convey  the  disease  from 
Mabel  to  the  first  one  passing  over  them. 


292  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Flowers  were  sent  in  profusion  to  the  bungalow 
for  the  sick  girl.  She  had  found  a  way  into  their 
simple  hearts. 

It  was  not  all  in  vain.  By  noon  the  worst  was 
passed.  At  night  the  Doctor  bade  all  hope.  Next 
morning  there  was  little  danger  that  time  and 
care  would  not  bring  recovery. 

Evening  found  the  Doctor  at  her  own  bunga- 
low. She  was  tired,  but  happy.  Mabel  was  well 
out  of  danger.  Word  had  come  from  her  as- 
sistant that  Mrs.  Dickson  was  rapidly  improv- 
ing. Esther  was  enjoying  her  relaxation,  but 
feeling  rather  lonesome. 

A  servant  called  at  the  door  announcing  that 
Lockland  Sahib  had  come  to  see  her. 

"  Give  him  my  salams,"  said  the  Doctor.  That 
meant  to  usher  him  in. 

Lockland's  lucky  star  was  in  the  ascendant 
that  night.  He  had  come  with  the  set  purpose 
again  to  sue  for  the  lady's  heart  and  hand.  If 
he  had  hit  upon  an  inopportune  time  before,  he 
was  more  fortunate  at  this  second  trial.  Esther 
had  glowing  recollections  of  his  recent  heroic 
services.  She  was  happy  in  the  consciousness  of 
tasks  well  done.  But  she  was  also  weary  and 
lonely  after  her  long  exertion  and  anxiety  for 
others.  Companionship  was  grateful  to  her.  Her 
powers  of  resistance  were  at  low  ebb. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  293 

They  talked  of  many  things  of  mutual  interest. 
Esther  was  compelled  to  admit  to  herself  that 
he  was  an  uncommonly  handsome  and  wholesome 
looking  man.  Lockland,  without  resistance,  ad- 
mitted to  himself  that  she  was  altogether  the 
brightest  and  most  charming  little  woman  he  had 
ever  met.  They  drifted  into  reminiscences  of 
that  wild  night  upon  the  river.  He  upbraided 
himself  for  not  having  done  better.  She  would 
hear  of  no  disparagement.  But  for  him,  she 
would  have  drowned.  Then  his  good  genius 
prompted  him  to  speak. 

"  Miss  Emmett,  I  wish  with  all  my  heart  that 
you  would  let  me  be  with  you  to  help  you  always. 
Will  you  not  make  me  happy  by  being  my  own 
dear  wife?  " 

Esther  was  blushing  and  looking  at  the  floor. 
His  heart  leapt  with  hope.  He  thought  how  dif- 
ferent she  now  was  from  the  girl  who  had 
formerly  so  promptly  refused  him.  Drawing  his 
chair  close  beside  her,  he  pleaded  with  her  to  bid 
him  hope.  It  was  well  he  was  so  close  to  her,  for 
when  she  at  last  spoke  the  little  word  he  sought  it" 
was  so  low  and  faltering  that  he  could  barely 
hear  it. 

Lockland  was  a  happy  man  as  he  strode  away 
through  the  darkness,  whistling  a  merry  tune. 
And  the  dear  little  woman,  who  had  so  long  been. 


294  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

fighting  her  own  battles,  and  thinking  only  of 
the  good  of  others,  sank  to  rest  that  night  think- 
ing about  herself  and  the  love  of  the  strong  man 
who  was  henceforth  to  uphold  her. 

Their  plans  for  the  future  were  soon  formed. 
Her  furlough  was  overdue.  Another  doctor 
would  soon  be  out  to  relieve  her.  They  would  be 
married  and  go  to  his  home  in  England,  for  she 
had  no  home  in  America.  After  a  happy  year  to- 
gether there,  they  would  return  to  the  land  they 
both  desired  to  serve,  and  where  she  had  the  work 
she  loved.  Mabel  would  sail  by  the  same  steamer. 
Complete  recovery  from  her  severe  illness  could 
not  be  had  in  India.  She  would  leave  them  in 
England  and  return  to  her  old  home. 

The  wedding  took  place  at  high  noon  one  bright 
day  in  September  when  the  rain  forgot  to  fall. 
The  chapel  was  a  bower  of  flowers.  All  the  way 
thereto  was  overarched  with  green  and  thickly 
strewn  with  blossoms.  From  far  and  near  the 
people  had  gathered  to  see  the  marriage  of  their 
healer  and  friend,  the  Doctor  Miss  Sahib.  The 
chapel  was  packed,  and  throngs  stood  about 
doors  and  windows. 

Then  there  was  a  farewell  reception  in  the 
afternoon  before  they  took  the  train  for  Bombay. 
It  was  presided  over  by  the  native  magistrate. 
Hindus,  Mohammedans  and  Christians  mingled 


I 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  295 

together.  The  community  would  express  its  ap- 
preciation of  the  doctor  and  the  Beautiful  Lady 
as  they  were  leaving.  Garlands  were  hung  about 
their  necks.  Attar  of  roses  was  profusely 
sprinkled  over  them.  Gifts  were  lavished  upon 
them.  Testimonials,  printed  upon  silks  and 
framed  under  glass,  were  presented  to  them.  In 
English  and  in  Hindi,  in  song  and  in  oration,  in 
poetry  and  in  prose,  people  told  them  to  their 
faces  what  they  thought  of  them. 

When  the  program  was  ended  the  encomiums 
broke  out  afresh  by  volunteer  speeches  which 
could  not  be  restrained. 

One  old  Babu  averred  that  after  the  Doctor 
had  gone  the  town  of  Mungalpore  would  be  "  like 
Hamlet  with  the  ghost  left  out." 

A  young  man,  not  to  be  outdone  in  gallantry, 
or  in  Shakespearean  lore,  praised  the  queenly 
grace  and  the  kindly  deeds  of  Mabel,  and  con- 
cluded by  saying  in  a  tearful  voice — 

'  Take  her  for  all  in  all, 
We  shall  never  look  like  her  again.' 

It  was  all  very  funny,  and  very  touching,  too. 
Beneath  the  native  love  of  display  there  was  a 
real  depth  of  feeling,  and  a  real  appreciation  of 
the  helpful  services  of  the  friends  who  were  going 


296  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

far  away.  Only  the  near  approach  of  the  hour  of 
departure  finally  ended  the  laudations. 

The  long  train  pulled  into  the  station  and 
halted.  The  travelers  found  the  compartment  re- 
served for  them.  There  were  warm  hand-grasps, 
and  kisses  and  tears  and  laughter.  Then  the 
train  moved  away.  That  seemed  the  real  parting 
with  India.  Seeing  its  shores  sink  into  the  waters 
as  the  ship  steamed  westward  from  Bombay  next 
day,  did  not  cost  half  as  much  regret. 

Lockland  and  Esther  were  very  happy.  They 
were  off  for  a  holiday,  and  without  a  care.  For 
Mabel  it  was  different.  To  what  was  she  going 
back? 

"  Brave,  beautiful  darling,"  said  Esther,  in 
speaking  of  her  friend  to  her  husband.  "  I  hope 
that  the  future  will  have  balm  to  heal  all  the 
hurts  of  the  cruel  past." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  297 


CHAPTER  XVII 

A    HAND    OUT    OF    THE    DARKNESS 

FRANK  STANTON  landed  in  New  York  after  a 
thoroughly  wretched  month  spent  en  route.  A 
few  hours  later,  he  was  on  the  train  speeding  to- 
wards Lexington.  He  saw  none  of  the  beauty 
of  the  hills  and  vales  as  the  train  traversed  the 
mountains.  There  was  in  his  heart  a  dread  of 
what  awaited  him.  For  the  first  time  in  his  life, 
Home-going  did  not  mean  joy  at  the  thought  of 
seeing  his  mother  and  his  betrothed. 

He  had  not  found  courage  to  write  after  leav- 
ing Calcutta.  From  London  he  had  cabled  news 
of  his  safe  arrival.  A  telegram  telling  when  he 
would  be  home  had  been  sent  from  New  York. 
Yet  no  one  was  at  the  station  when  he  arrived, 
late  in  the  afternoon.  It  made  him  more  heavy- 
hearted  than  ever.  Calling  a  carriage  he  drove 
to  his  house.  How  familiar  the  way,  along 
Limestone,  and  Main,  and  out  Broadway.  But 
what  an  eternity  it  seemed  since  he  had  passed 
that  way  before. 


298  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

The  house  looked  strangely  deserted  and  closed 
up.  It  made  the  man  feel  weak  as  he  stepped 
from  the  carriage.  When  he  rang  the  door-bell 
his  hand  shook  as  though  palsied.  It  was  but  a 
moment,  yet  seemed  an  age,  until  the  door  was 
opened  by  the  old  man-servant. 

"  Praise  de  Lawd !  youse  come  at  last,"  the 
darkey  cried,  as  Frank  grasped  his  worn  old 
hand. 

"  Moth,er?  where  is  she? "  he  asked  as  he 
pushed  past  the  servant  into  the  hall. 

"  Oh,  Mars  Frank !"  was  all  old  Sam  could  say. 

It  was  enough.  Frank  read  the  tragic  meaning 
of  tone  and  words. 

"  For  God's  sake,  Sam,  tell  me  she  isn't  dead," 
he  cried. 

The  faithful  old  fellow  could  only  shake  his 
head,  while  tears  of  sorrow  and  sympathy  coursed 
down  his  wrinkled  face.  It  told  more  than  any 
words  could  have  done.  Frank  sank  into  a  chair 
and  buried  his  face  in  his  hands. 

After  a  few  minutes  Sam  went  close  to  his 
young  master.  Kesting  his  hand  upon  his  head 
as  he  had  often  done  when  Frank  was  a  child,  he 
told  how  they  had  found  the  '  ole  Miss  '  dead  in 
her  chair  that  sad  morning,  more  than  three 
weeks  before. 

"  Sam,"  he  said  at  length,  "  I  am  going  to  my; 


"Mother  ?  Where  is  she  ? 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  299 

room.  If  there  is  mail  for  me,  bring  it  there.  Do 
not  let  any  one  into  the  house." 

He  went  upstairs  and  into  his  old  room.  It 
h'ad  evidently  been  made  ready  for  him.  Upon 
the  desk  were  lying  some  letters  and  a  small 
packet.  Turning  them  over  he  recognized  Mabel's 
writing  upon  the  packet  and  one  letter.  Another 
was  from  his  mother's  lawyer.  He  had  not 
courage  to  touch  the  former;  the  latter  he  tore 
open  and  read.  It  informed  him  that  a  cable- 
gram to  Calcutta  had  brought  an  answer  from 
Clifford  that  he  was  already  on  his  way  home, 
but  had  not  told  where  a  message  could  reach 
him.  Frank  felt  sure  that  the  omission  had  been 
intentional,  to  spare  him  additional  anguish  on 
the  long  voyage.  The  lawyer  asked  him  to  call  as 
soon  as  possible. 

Mabel's  letter  was  open  in  his  hand  at  last. 
How  simply  it  began;  how  calmly  it  went  on  to 
the  end. 

"  Dear  Frank, — I  shall  be  far  away  when  you 
get  this.  I  am  going  because  I  cannot  stay  to 
meet  you  now  that  your  life  has  been  bound  to 
another.  What  I  shall  do  in  the  future,  I  do  not 
know.  I  only  know  I  must  go  away  now. 

"  The  dear  little  mother  looked  so  sweet  and 
peaceful  when  I  saw  her  the  day  after  the  letters 


300  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

came.    Her  spirit  will  surely  be  near  you  to  help 
you,  and  you  must  do  what  is  brave  and  right. 

"  I  am  leaving  the  ring  for  you.  But  do  not 
think  that  I  have  ceased  to  love  you.  It  is  only 
that  our  lives  have  been  torn  apart.  When  you 
read  this  I  shall  be  praying  that  you  may  come 
out  of  this  sorrow  and  ruin,  your  own  noble  self 
again.  Do  not  disappoint  my  hopes  by  any  fail- 
ure. 

LWith  deathless  love, 
Mabel." 

Such  had  been  his  home-coming,  and  his  wel- 
come. The  cup  of  his  misery  was  indeed  full. 

During  that  night  of  sorrow  and  anguish  of 
spirit,  Frank  slept  little  and  planned  much.  He 
would  arrange  his  business  affairs  with  his  law- 
yer and  get  away  from  Lexington  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible. Where  he  would  go  or  what  he  would  do 
he  was  not  sure.  His  ordination  papers  had  been 
forfeited ;  he  had  no  thought  of  preaching.  Per- 
haps he  could  teach  somewhere.  Something  he 
must  do  to  redeem  the  past.  In  all  the  bitter- 
ness of  his  thoughts  he  cried  out  neither  against 
God  nor  any  fellow-creature.  For  his  mother  and 
Mabel  and  Radha,  the  three  women  whose  lives 
had  been  involved  in  the  wreck  of  his  own,  he 
had  no  word  of  reproach.  With  the  ways  of  Pro- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  301 

Tidence,  and  the  misery  of  his  lot,  he  had  no  dis- 
position to  quarrel.  It  was  a  hopeful  sign,  full 
of  promise  for  the  future.  The  man  was  well- 
nigh  crushed  to  the  earth.  Yet  he  was  lavishing 
his  pity  not  upon  self,  but  upon  those  whom  he 
had  injured.  He  was  not  wasting  his  energies  in 
cowardly  whining  over  the  hardness  of  his  lot, 
but  was  trying  to  use  them  in  shaping  his  course 
for  the  future. 

The  early  morning  found  him  at  his  mother's 
grave.  He  had  covered  it  over  with  flowers.  Up- 
on his  knees,  between  the  graves  of  his  father  and 
mother  he  was  seeking  to  hold  communion  with 
their  spirits.  Certainly  they  spoke  to  their  boy 
by  the  power  of  their  own  noble  lives,  and  not 
less  by  the  loftiness  of  their  ideals  for  him.  It 
seemed  to  him  that  he  could  almost  hear  actual 
words  of  counsel  and  of  cheer,  and  that  his  words 
of  love  and  penitence  and  promise  were  also 
heard.  From  the  peaceful  beauty  of  the  resting 
place  of  so  many  noble  dead,  from  the  memories 
of  the  past,  from  the  thought  of  the  immortality 
which  is  to  swallow  up  all  mortal  cares  and 
pains,  his  spirit  drank  repose. 

A  few  hours  with  his  lawyer  enabled  Frank  to 
learn  how  his  financial  affairs  stood,  and  to  make 
all  necessary  arrangements  for  the  immediate 
future.  The  Stantons  had  never  been  rich.  Yet 


302  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

there  was  enough  to  keep  Frank  very  comfortably 
without  work,  if  he  had  been  disposed  to  idle. 
He  knew,  however,  that  such  a  life  would  mean 
misery  and  ruin.  Promising  to  keep  the  lawyer 
informed  as  to  his  whereabouts,  he  announced 
his  intention  of  leaving  Lexington  that  day. 

By  night  he  was  in  Cincinnati.  The  next  day 
he  reached  Chicago.  Just  why  he  went  there  he 
did  not  know,  but  he  hoped  it  would  afford  him 
an  opportunity  to  begin  life  anew  unnoticed.  It 
had  the  advantage  of  being  a  place  familiar  to 
him,  and  yet  not  intimately  associated  with  his 
blighted  hopes. 

For  some  days  he  drifted  rather  aimlessly 
about.  To  seek  his  former  associates  in  his  old 
work  would  demand  humiliating  explanations. 
Any  application  for  a  position  of  responsibility 
such  as  he  wanted,  would  be  useless  without 
recommendations  that  were  not  then  obtainable. 
It  was  two  weeks  before  he  bethought  him  of 
some  seminary  acquaintances  who  were  engaged 
in  social  settlement  work  in  the  city.  Perhaps  he 
could  begin  there  without  having  to  answer  em- 
barrassing questions,  if  he  would  offer  his  service 
free. 

His  arrival  at  the  settlement  and  offer  to 
work  were  hailed  as  a  godsend.  Both  workers 
and  money  were  scarce  there.  Frank  soon  found 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  303 

himself  busy  enough.  His  special  tasks  were  re- 
lief visitation  by  day,  and  teaching  a  class  of 
young  men  at  night.  For  a  time,  the  work  in- 
terested and  diverted  him.  It  was  not  long, 
though,  until  it  began  to  prove  to  be  the  wrong 
environment  for  him. 

Lonely,  depressed,  stripped  of  the  dearest  hopes 
of  his  life,  the  man  was  unfit  for  work  which  re- 
quired him  constantly  to  give  to  others  without 
opportunity  to  receive  help  from  them.  The  flaw 
developed  in  his  character  by  strong  temptation 
in  India  was  a  source  of  weakness.  He  was  daily 
brought  into  contact  with  life  upon  low  levels. 
When  tired  and  discouraged,  inclination  to  aban- 
don himself  to  evil  was  always  met  by  oppor- 
tunity, and  frequently  by  solicitation  to  do  so. 
Life  became  a  continual  battle  with  despondency 
and  passion.  Retreat  or  defeat  was  becoming  in- 
evitable. 

When  the  darkness  had  so  deepened  about  him 
that  Frank  had  all  but  lost  his  way,  a  helping 
hand  was  unexpectedly  reached  out  to  him.  His 
lawyer  had  been  his  father's  friend  and  comrade- 
in-arms  in  the  days  when  the  South's  heroic  sons 
wore  the  gray.  The  good  man  did  not  know  just 
what  had  brought  the  boy  home  and  separated 
him  from  Mabel.  Nor  did  he  know  any  of  the 
details  of  the  struggle  going  on  in  the  slums  of 


304  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Chicago.  But  he  realized  that  things  were  sadly 
out  of  joint,  and  that  the  boy  was  in  danger.  It 
was  with  the  determination  to  do  for  Frank  what 
he  would  have  wanted  some  one  to  do  for  his 
son,  under  like  circumstances,  that  the  lawyer 
had  written  a  letter  to  another  old  friend  of  Mr. 
Stanton's.  The  letter  had  told  all  the  writer 
knew  of  the  case,  and  had  urged  the  friend  to  help 
the  lad  if  he  could  think  of  a  way. 

Thus  it  happened  that  Frank  one  day  got  a 
letter  from  General  Sinclair,  inviting  him  to  visit 
him  at  his  home  in  the  Old  Dominion,  with  a  view 
to  taking  up  some  important  work  with  him.  The 
opportunity  to  escape  from  an  intolerable  situa- 
tion was  too  welcome  to  be  refused.  Within  a 
week  Stanton  had  exchanged  the  foulness  and 
evil  of  a  city  slum,  for  the  pure  air  of  the  hill 
country  of  southwest  Virginia. 

General  Sinclair  had  been  a  brave  fighter  dur- 
ing all  the  years  of  the  civil  war.  When  the  war 
was  ended,  however,  he  had  followed  the  example 
of  his  great  Commander,  as  he  had  formerly  fol- 
lowed his  leadership.  It  was  a  time  when  the 
South  needed  all  her  brave  sons  more  than  ever. 
He  would  not  flee  the  rigors  of  reconstruction. 
He  would  not  fan  into  flame  the  smoldering  em- 
bers of  sectional  hatred.  So  the  man,  yet  in  his 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  305 

thirties,  had  looked  about  him  for  some  way  to 
serve  the  best  interests  of  his  native  state. 

The  great  Commander  had  gone  to  a  quiet  town 
in  the  Valley,  and  had  assumed  the  leadership 
of  an  already  venerable  and  honorable  institu- 
tion of  learning.  Well  had  he  known  that  Vir- 
ginia's help  and  the  South's  must  come  from 
their  own  sons.  Equally  well  had  he  realized 
that  those  sons  could  be  prepared  for  such  help- 
fulness only  by  patient  teaching  from  those  who 
had  known  the  best  of  the  old  life,  had  tasted  all 
the  bitterness  of  the  new,  and  were  willing  to 
endure  it  patiently  for  the  sake  of  a  newer  day 
yet  to  dawn.  The  great  Commander  showed  him- 
self as  ready  to  do  his  part  in  such  teaching  as 
he  had  been  to  take  the  leadership  of  the  armed 
hosts  whose  heroic  struggle  for  their  state  had 
challenged  the  admiration  of  the  world.  Thus 
the  Commander  of  the  Army  of  Northern  Vir- 
ginia became  the  President  of  a  college.  Even 
nobler  in  defeat  than  he  had  been  in  victory, 
greater  in  peace  than  he  had  been  in  war,  he 
led  the  vanguard  of  the  hosts  of  the  New  South. 
To  this  day  his  dauntless  spirit  marches  before 
the  valorous  manhood  of  the  South.  Every  man 
of  vision  can  see  him,  modestly  wearing  the  lau- 
rels wherewith  his  people  crowned  him  more 
gloriously  in  his  defeat  than  others  were  else- 


306  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

where  crowned  in  victory,  going  on  in  the  sunset 
hours  of  his  life,  doing  well  his  simple  tasks,  a 
soldierly,  heroic,  benign  man.  And  no  true 
Southerner  remains  unmoved  as  the  Command- 
er's words  come  to  his  ears  from  those  bygone 
days :  "  Let  us  work  to  make  Virginia  great 
again." 

It  was  under  the  influence  of  such  counsel  and 
such  an  example  that  General  Sinclair  had 
labored  at  the  teacher's  desk  for  a  whole  genera- 
tion. His  academy  combined  military  training 
with  scholastic  lore.  No  private  institution  in 
the  South  had  better  patronage  or  wider  in- 
fluence. It  was  known  to  stand  for  honor  and 
manhood.  Though  the  General  was  growing  old, 
his  academy  continued  a  fountain  of  perpetual 
youth  whose  living  streams  flowed  out  to  bless 
the  land.  In  its  pure  air,  upon  its  hilltop, 
guided  by  the  knightly  soldier,  young  men 
learned  to  breathe  deep,  and  stand  straight,  and 
see  far.  Thither  his  angel  of  good  fortune  had 
led  the  feet  of  Frank  Stanton. 

"  Well,  my  boy,  I  certainly  am  glad  to  see  you," 
the  General  cried  heartily,  as  he  shook  the  new- 
comer warmly  by  the  hand. 

"  I  thank  you,  sir,"  responded  Frank.  "  It  is  a 
pleasure  to  me  to  be  here,  and  to  see  my  father's 
old  friend." 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  307 

"  You  are  the  image  of  your  father  as  I  knew 
him  in  the  old  war  times,"  said  the  General,  look- 
ing the  young  man  over  attentively. 

That  night  the  two  men  had  a  long  talk  to- 
gether after  the  evening  meal.  The  General 
wanted  Frank  to  accept  a  position  in  the  school, 
with  a  possible  view  to  succeed  to  its  leadership 
when  the  older  man  must  give  it  up. 

"  This  sort  of  work  is  as  much  .needed  in  the 
South  to-day  as  it  was  at  the  close  of  the  war," 
the  General  said.  "  This  is  our  real  period  of 
reconstruction.  No  one  fully  realizes  the  changes 
that  are  now  rapidly  taking  place  in  our  social 
and  industrial  life.  The  Southland  is  getting 
rich,  her  vast  resources  are  just  being  discovered 
and  developed.  If  we  are  to  have  a  generation 
of  men  who  will  use  all  the  material  advantages 
of  the  new  era,  and  yet  preserve  the  chivalry  and 
grace  of  the  old  regime,  now  is  the  time  for  our 
churches  and  schools  to  be  busy.  My  work  will 
be  over  before  the  reconstruction  is  accomplished. 
I  must  find  helpers." 

"  General,"  the  young  man  replied,  "  I  am  sure 
you  are  right.  I  wish  that  I  were  worthy  to 
have  even  a  very  small  part  in  this  work.  Cer- 
tainly I  am  not  fit  to  take  the  lead  in  any  respon- 
sible enterprise.  Indeed,  I  must  now  show  you 
how  unworthy  of  your  confidence  I  am." 


308  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Thereupon  he  made  a  full  statement  of  his 
shameful  failure  in  India.  Notwithstanding  the 
General's  effort  to  silence  him,  he  went  on  to 
the  end  of  the  story.  He  spoke  with  embarrass- 
ment, but  without  cant  or  subterfuge.  Not  even 
his  recent  struggles  were  concealed. 

"  Now,"  said  he,  when  his  confession  was 
finished,  and  he  was  wiping  the  perspiration 
from  his  brow  and  hands,  "  you  see  for  yourself 
that  leadership  of  the  South's  new  manhood  is 
not  for  me." 

The  General  had  listened  attentively,  and  had 
watched  him  closely.  He  now  arose  and  stood 
beside  his  young  friend. 

"  God  forbid  that  I  should  encourage  you  to 
regard  your  sin  as  a  light  affair,"  he  said.  "  But 
I  can  say  without  reserve  that  your  story  has 
neither  surprised  me,  nor  altered  my  opinion  of 
you.  From  what  I  had  previously  learned  of 
your  case,  I  was  prepared  for  your  confession. 
You  have  spoken  like  a  man,  and  you  have  fought 
and  conquered  like  a  man  in  all  the  hard  battles 
you  have  seen  since  leaving  Calcutta.  I  want 
a  man  here,  and  I  repeat  my  offer." 

"  But,  General,"  protested  Stanton,  "  I  have 
failed  once  and  may  fail  again." 

"  I'll  run  the  risk  of  that,"  the  old  soldier  re- 
plied. "  Our  task  in  the  South  is  to  lead  a  peo- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  309 

pie  who  have  known  the  pain  and  humiliation  of 
crushing  defeat.  Perhaps  you  will  serve  the  bet- 
ter from  having  known  the  like  yourself." 

"  Think,  though,  General,  of  how  perilously 
near  I  have  been  to  falling  into  destruction  while 
in  Chicago,"  interposed  Frank,  nervously. 

"  My  boy,"  said  the  old  man  kindly,  and  he 
laid  his  hand  upon  Frank's  shoulder,  "  it  is  be- 
cause you  have  passed  unscathed  through  the 
past  few  months,  that  I  believe  in  you.  That  you 
have  been  tempted  is  nothing;  every  man  with 
red  blood  in  his  body  is  often  tempted.  That 
you  have  fought  the  fight  like  a  victor  and  con- 
quered despite  terrible  odds,  is  everything.  I 
need  you  here,  and  I  repeat  my  offer." 

Forthwith  a  new  era  in  Frank  Stanton's  life 
began.  To  find  himself  with  a  friend  from  whom 
he  had  concealed  nothing;  to  be  trusted  once 
more  by  a  manly  man;  to  be  surrounded  by 
normal,  healthy  human  beings  for  whom  he  could 
honorably  work — it  put  new  courage  into  him. 
As  he  thought  it  all  over,  lying  in  his  bed  that 
first  night  and  looking  out  upon  the  moonlit 
hills,  he  could  only  ask  himself  whether  he  was 
dreaming,  or  just  awakening  from  a  torturing 
nightmare. 

He  was  to  make  his  home  with  the  General. 
That  good  man  lived  with  his  widowed  sister. 


310  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

The  ruin  which  had  engulfed  the  *  Lost  Cause ' 
had  swept  away  the  heart's  idols  of  each.  The 
sister's  husband  had  fallen  with  Stuart  in  the  de- 
fense of  Kichmond.  The  General's  wife,  and  the 
baby  boy  he  had  never  seen,  had  died  of  want  and 
exposure  amid  the  inhuman  horrors  of  the  Valley 
Campaign.  Brother  and  sister  alike,  preferred 
the  memories  of  the  past  to  any  new  joys  held 
out  to  them  by  possible  alliances  with  other  life- 
companions.  So  they  had  dwelt  together  for 
more  than  thirty  years,  their  spirits  chastened  by 
unforgotten  bereavements,  and  helped  to  noble 
achievement  by  fellowship  with  their  blessed 
dead. 

Their  house  stood  hard  by  the  academy  build- 
ings, behind  which  were  the  barracks  that  housed 
the  cadets.  As  many  a  homesick  lad  had  learned, 
the  General's  house  was  one  that  was  filled  with 
the  real  spirit  of  home.  Frank  found  it  so,  too, 
and  his  heart  was  again  warmed  into  life  by  the 
kindness  of  the  General  and  his  sister. 

He  was  soon  both  teacher  and  learner  at  the 
academy.  In  the  class  room  he  took  up  his  work 
with  a  zest  that  made  him  a  success  from  the 
start.  Upon  the  parade  ground  and  at  home,  he 
studied  and  practiced  military  science  and  tac- 
tics so  assiduously  that  the  General  and  the  other 
instructors  declared  he  was  a  born  soldier.  With 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  311 

his  colleagues  and  with  the  cadets  he  became  a 
prime  favorite.  The  General  noted  with  satis- 
faction that  the  man  was  a  natural  leader,  and 
that  his  presence  in  the  institution  was  proving 
salutary.  It  had  been  no  mistake  to  trust  him. 

As  the  months  passed,  Frank  regained  con- 
fidence in  himself.  He  was  mastering  his  fears 
and  defeating  his  evil  genius.  At  the  same  time, 
the  memories  of  the  past  saved  him  from  over- 
weening assurance.  Healthful  activity  and 
human  comradeship  kept  him  from  despondency 
in  spite  of  his  bitter  regrets  and  his  shattered 
hopes.  In  the  fires  of  sorrow  his  spirit  was  being 
tempered  for  noble  uses. 

"  General,"  he  said  one  day,  "  I  believe  that  I 
shall  get  to  be  a  man  again,  thanks  to  your  timely 
help  and  confidence." 

((  Thanks  to  your  own  manly  fight,  my  boy," 
replied  the  General  with  a  kindly  smile.  "  I 
haven't  worked  with  boys  all  these  years  for  noth- 
ing. Frank,  I  was  sure  of  you  from  the  start." 

"  I  can  never  repay  you,"  Frank  began  humbly. 
But  the  General  cut  him  short. 

"  Tut,  tut !"  he  cried,  "  We'll  have  no  talk  of 
pay  here.  And  if  it  comes  to  that,  I  should  be 
the  debtor.  You  are  invaluable  to  me  in  my 
.work." 


312  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  So  long  as  I  can  serve  you  here,  you  may 
count  upon  my  help,"  Stanton  said. 

"  Then  you  will  stay  fifty  years  after  I  am 
dead  and  gone,"  the  General  answered  with  a 
laugh.  "  Don't  forget,  I  am  counting  upon  you 
to  continue  my  work  after  I  have  to  give  it  up." 

"  If  I  can  show  myself  worthy,  I  could  ask  no 
higher  honor,"  the  young  man  assured  his  friend. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  313 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

THE  BIRD  WITH  A  BROKEN  PINION 

WAR'S  wild  alarm  was  sounding  through  the 
land.  Men  were  rallying  to  the  call  to  arms. 

Not  that  the  country  had  been  invaded  by  any 
foe.  All  was  peace  and  security  throughout  our 
broad  domains.  No  insult  had  been  offered  to 
our  flag  or  our  citizens  abroad.  Nor  had  a 
hunger  for  more  land  seized  the  nation.  What, 
then,  meant  the  awakening  of  our  martial  spirit? 

A  once  mighty  nation  had  come  to  the  evil  days 
of  its  senility  and  dotage.  Incapable  of  main- 
taining the  vast  empire  in  the  West  which  the 
genius  and  pluck  of  Columbus  had  secured  for 
it,  year  by  year  it  had  lost  its  American  posses- 
sions. Unfit  to  govern  men,  Spain  undertook  to 
oppress  them.  Unable  to  quell  the  revolution  in 
Cuba  that  her  incompetence  and  cruelty  had 
caused,  she  seemed  bent  upon  the  perpetuation 
of  a  series  of  barbarities  which  shocked  the  civ- 
ilized world.  It  was  high  time  for  Spain  to  be 


3H  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

taught  that  the  old-world  despotism  of  past  cen- 
turies would  not  be  tolerated  in  the  free  air  of 
the  nineteenth  century  anywhere  near  the  Amer- 
ican continent.  Spain  could  not  rule  Cuba,  and 
would  not  let  it  rule  itself,  therefore  she  must  be 
made  to  get  out  of  the  new  world,  bag  and  bag- 
gage. 

To  American  suggestions  that  she  speedily  re- 
store the  island  to  peace,  Spain  turned  a  deaf  ear. 
To  demands  that  her  atrocities  cease,  she  re- 
turned sullen  and  defiant  answers.  It  was1  be- 
coming apparent  that  something  more  drastic 
than  polite  correspondence. would  be  required  to 
loosen  the  rapacious  grasp  of  the  cruel  dotard 
upon  the  Pearl  of  the  Antilles.  That  something 
was*  grim  war. 

Patience  was  holding  out,  though  it  was  ceas- 
ing to  be  a  virtue.  Then  something  happened. 
In  Havana  harbor,  where  it  had  undoubted  right 
to  be,  an  American  battle-ship  was  peacefully 
lying.  Through  criminal  carelessness,  or  some- 
thing far  worse,  Spain  allowed  a  mine  to  be  ex- 
ploded beneath  that  ship.  The  majestic  vessel 
that  had  ridden  the  waves  so  proudly,  had  heaved 
upward  above  that  dread  explosion,  and  had  set- 
tle down  beneath  the  waters,  ruined  and  wrecked 
forever.  Brave  officers  and  men  who  were  sleep- 
ing in  security  were  robbed  of  their  lives,  trapped 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  315 

and  drowned  as  though  they  had  been  miserable 
rats.  Then  America  cried,  "  Remember  the 
Maine !"  Her  sons  answered,  "  We  will  re- 
member." The  boom  of  that  treacherous  mine 
sounded  the  death-knell  of  Spain's  imperial  glory. 
It  was  a  signal  to  sign  the  death-warrant  of  her 
power  beyond  the  seas. 

When  the  declaration  of  war  was  followed  by 
the  President's  call  for  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  thousand  volunteers,  Frank  Stanton  an- 
nounced to  the  General  his  determination  to  en- 
list. 

"  It's  a  righteous  cause.  It's  a  chance  for  us 
Southerners  to  prove  our  loyalty.  I  don't  know 
how  anyone  could  be  freer  to  go  into  the  service 
of  his  country  than  I  am,"  he  said  to  his  old 
friend. 

"  Far  be  it  from  me  to  oppose  you,  my  boy," 
the  old  soldier  answered.  "  I  declare,  I  am  think- 
ing of  offering  my  services  to  my  country." 

"  But  you;  have  seen  war  enough  in  your  time," 
Frank  suggested.  "  Why  not  leave  the  business 
to  young  blood?  " 

"  There  is  a  good  deal  of  fight  left  in  me  yet," 
said  the  General,  shaking  his  head  and  smiling. 
"  Besides,  there  is  much  that  appeals  to  me  in 
what  you  say  about  this  opportunity  for  Souther- 
ners to  show  their  loyalty  to  our  flag.  I  assure 


316  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

you,  I  have  known  few  sadder  days  than  the  one 
when  I  had  to  choose  between  my  country  and 
my  native  state.  The  South,  and  Virginia  par- 
ticularly, did  more  than  any  others  to  make  pos- 
sible our  nation  and  our  flag.  Now  that  the  old 
Cause  is  dead,  I  long  to  prove  once  more  what 
Virginia  can  do  for  the  nation  she  has  so  largely 
created." 

"  I  hope  that  many  Southerners  will  enlist," 
said  Frank.  "  In  the  civil  war,  our  cause  was  so 
entangled  with  slavery  that  we  seemed  to  be  fight- 
ing for  human  oppression.  Now  we  can  strike  a 
blow  for  the  freedom  of  man." 

"  You  go  ahead  and  enlist  at  once,  my  boy," 
counseled  the  General  with  enthusiasm.  "  I'll 
see  how  I  can  arrange  my  affairs,  and  will  offer 
my  services  later,  if  possible." 

When  Frank  left  for  the  war,  ten  of  the  older 
cadets  went  along.  They  were  of  sufficient  ma- 
turity to  realize  what  they  were  doing.  They 
went  with  the  approval  of  the  General,  and  the 
sanction  of  their  parents. 

All  over  the  country  men  were  eagerly  pressing 
into  the  service.  Colleges,  counting-houses, 
farms,  factories,  were  all  furnishing  their  quota. 
From  the  far  west  came  cowboys  and  ranchmen, 
inured  to  hardship  by  daily  toil  and  danger. 
From  the  east  came  men  who  had  learned  courage 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  317 

and  the  love  of  contest  upon  university  football 
teams.  From  the  south  came  youths  who  had 
drunk  in  chivalry  and  valor  with  the  air  they 
daily  breathed.  All  were  Americans,  and  all 
were  valiant  men  and  true. 

Stanton  soon  found  himself  at  Camp  Thomas, 
Chickamauga  Park,  along  with  forty  thousand 
volunteers  and  regulars  that  the  government  was 
hastily  trying  to  train  into  an  army.  The  life  in 
camp  and  upon  parade  ground  was  not  without 
its  trials  to  the  raw  recruits.  But  with  its  abun- 
dance of  good  food  and  water,  and  its  absence 
from  danger,  it  differed  widely  from  what  the 
men  who  wore  the  gray  and  the  blue  had  known 
there  in  sixty-three.  There,  at  Missionary  Ridge, 
more  than  a  hundred  thousand  men  had  met  in 
mortal  combat  under  the  leadership  of  Rosecrans 
and  Bragg.  And  a  little  later,  but  a  few  miles 
away,  Bragg  and  Grant  had  been  locked  in  deadly 
conflict  in  front  of  Chattanooga.  It  should  all 
have  been  holy  ground  to  the  men  whose  fathers 
had  fought  and  died  there. 

Yet,  notwithstanding  the  absence  of  war  at 
Camp  Thomas,  more  than  four  hundred  men  were 
to  die  there  from  the  unaccustomed  trials  of  camp 
life.  And  despite  the  sacred  memories  which 
hallowed  the  ground,  and  the  high  mission  which 
had  called  the  men  to  posts  of  danger,  moral 


318  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

blight  was  to  fall  upon  many  a  young  life.  Home 
restraints  were  removed.  The  refining  influence 
of  pure  womanhood  was  absent.  Within  the 
camp  was  the  canteen.  Without  the  camp  were 
seductive  sirens  who  wore  the  guise  of  women, 
but  were  not  such. 

It  was  the  same  sad,  oft-repeated  story.  Men 
go  out  from  home  to  meet  privation  upon  the  bat- 
tle's edge  at  the  call  of  patriotism.  Men  leave 
behind  them  the  refinements  of  civilization,  and 
labor  for  their  loved  ones  upon  lonely  planta- 
tions and  in  mining  camps  and  lumber  camps. 
Men  turn  aside  from  the  sheltered  life  of  rural 
districts,  and  brave  the  toil  and  temptation  of 
populous  cities,  to  win  bread  for  mothers  and 
wives  and  children.  Higher  and  holier  motives 
than  these  there  are  none.  But  they  find  them- 
selves thereby  exposed  to  deadly  dangers.  Their 
country's  need  of  manly  men  is  forgotten.  Their 
home's  right  to  a  virtuous  life  is  lost  sight  of. 
Because  they  have  heard  the  call  of  duty  and 
counted  not  their  lives  dear  unto  themselves,  they 
have  gone  where  destruction  lies  in  wait  for  them. 
Even  with  call  of  country,  and  prayer  of  mother, 
and  pleading  of  wife,  aad  prattle  of  babe  ring- 
ing in  their  ears,  they  are  damned  and  dragged  to 
hell  for  life.  Perhaps  the  tragic  pathos  of  it  all 
will  so  dim  with  tears  the  eyes  of  the  recording 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  319 

angel  that  in  another  life  a  better  chance  will  be 
theirs. 

Frank  Stanton  knew  by  bitter  experience  the 
possibility  of  becoming  a  castaway  whilst  labor- 
ing for  others  in  the  noblest  of  callings.  He  soon 
discovered  what  was  going  on  in  the  camp  to 
many  a  man's  undoing.  It  did  not  take  him  long 
to  resolve  to  do  all  in  his  power  to  help  the  men 
keep  straight.  The  ten  cadets  who  had  come  with 
him  from  the  academy  were  a  good  nucleus  to 
begin  writh.  Them  he  called  together  for  coun- 
sel. 

"  Boys,"  he  said,  "  the  General  has  taught 
you  to  little  purpose  if  you  haven't  learned  how 
much  clean  manhood  is  worth  to  our  country.  It 
would  be  better  to  let  Spain  depopulate  Cuba, 
and  even  to  shoot  our  coast  cities  to  pieces,  than 
to  have  our  two  hundred  thousand  volunteers 
become  what  you  see  many  of  the  boys  here  are 
likely  to  become.  Most  of  them  will  be  back 
home  after  the  war  making  their  communities 
better  or  worse.  What  do  you  say  to  trying  to 
improve  things  here?  " 

"  I've  noticed  that  a  good  many  decent  chaps 
are  being  ruined,"  the  leader  of  the  cadets  said 
after  a  moment's  pause.  "  I  don't  know  just 
what  we  can  do  to  help  things,  except  to  keep 


320  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

ourselves  straight.  But  I'm  willing  to  try,  if 
you  can  suggest  anything." 

"  Well,"  responded  Stanton,  "  the  first  thing 
is  to  see  that  we  keep  ourselves  straight.  Then  be 
on  the  lookout  for  other  fellows  who  are  trying 
to  keep  straight  too.  After  that,  get  together  all 
who  will  try  to  keep  the  doubtful  men  away 
from  the  bad  men.  I  hope  to  have  something 
more  definite  to  tell  you  soon.  Meanwhile  if  we 
are  all  agreed  so  far,  let  us  shake  hands." 

The  young  fellows  all  entered  the  compact.  It 
helped  save  them,  and  made  them  a  power  for 
good  to  the  end  of  the  war. 

Very  soon  Stanton  found  he  was  not  the  only 
one  interested  in  the  manhood  of  the  troops.  A 
large  tent  was  set  up  in  the  camp  above  which 
floated  a  pennant  bearing  the  legend — '  Y.  M. 
C.  A.'  It  proved  a  rallying  point  for  all  moral 
and  religious  influences.  A  reading  and  writing 
room  was  provided  where  men  could  find  good 
literature  in  abundance,  and  a  place  to  write 
home.  There  were  comfortable  lounging  places 
and  plenty  of  interesting  games.  Meetings  were 
conducted  daily  and  nightly  with  good  music,  and 
straightforward  talks.  The  special  workers  who 
came  with  the  tent  soon  proved  popular  with  the 
men.  But  almost  from  the  first  Stanton  was  the 
most  influential  man  about  the  place. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  321 

It  was  Frank  who  formed  classes  in  various 
elementary  branches  for  the  benefit  of  men  whose 
early  opportunities  had  been  scant  or  unim- 
proved. It  was  he  who  organized  a  glee-club 
where  many  men  who  had  never  seen  the  inside  of 
a  college  learned  with  delight  a  number  of  rollick- 
ing college  songs.  He,  also,  it  was  who  started  an 
order  that  called  itself  <  Knights  of  the  Round 
Table,'  because  its  members  were  to  keep  them- 
selves from  all  words  and  deeds  which  defile 
manhood  by  dishonoring  womanhood.  And  it 
was  he  who  spoke  with  greatest  power  in  the 
various  services  held  at  the  tent.  Thus,  publicly 
and  privately,  the  man  was  proving  that  a  bird 
once  injured  by  a  snare  can  at  least  do  much  to 
keep  others  out  of  the  trap. 

Stanton  had  been  made  a  captain  in  a  cavalry 
brigade.  His  horsemanship,  and  his  acquain- 
tance with  military  tactics  had  helped  toward  his 
promotion.  Perhaps  the  influence  of  the  General, 
exerted  in  his  behalf,  had  also  helped.  It  was, 
however,  chiefly  to  his  inborn  ability  to  lead  men 
that  he  owed  the  honor.  As  an  officer,  his  in- 
fluence over  the  men  of  the  camp  was  all  the  more 
potent.  Far  and  near  amongst  those  who  had  at 
heart  the  moral  welfare  of  the  soldiers,  the  work 
of  Captain  Stanton  was  known  and  praised. 
The  first  call  for  volunteers  had  been  made  in 


322  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

April.  In  the  middle  of  May,  nearly  a  month 
later,  the  training  camp  at  Chickamauga  had 
been  occupied.  After  the  lapse  of  another  month, 
the  work  of  training  the  volunteers  was  suffi- 
ciently advanced,  there  and  elsewhere,  to  make 
possible  the  first  military  expedition  to  Cuba.  It 
had  been  a  sore  trial  to  fiery  editors  that  nearly 
two  months  had  elapsed  since  war  was  declared, 
and  there  had  been  no  battle.  True,  the  victory 
at  Manila  had  satisfied  their  belligerent  spirits 
for  a  day  or  two.  What  the  public  wanted,  how- 
ever, and  what  the  newspapers  demanded,  was  a 
pitched  battle  upon  Cuban  soil.  The  War  De- 
partment was  willing  enough  to  satisfy  the  pop- 
ular demand.  But  a  pitched  battle  without  an 
army  is  a  hard  thing  to  bring  about.  So  every- 
body had  been  waiting,  perforce,  whilst  a  none  too 
efficient  War  Department  was  trying  to  make  an 
army. 

In  course  of  time,  the  regulars  had  been 
brought  together  at  Tampa,  Florida.  Soon  after, 
they  were  reinforced  by  three  regiments  of  vol- 
unteers that  were  more  nearly  ready  for  service 
than  any  others.  General  Sinclair  was  with  the 
volunteer  cavalry  regiment  with  the  commission 
of  colonel.  Frank  was1  serving  under  him  as  cap- 
tain. At  the  end  of  the  first  week  in  June  the 
order  was  issued  for  the  army  to  proceed  to  Cuba. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  323 

After  a  degree  of  confusion  that  would  have 
reassured  the  enemy,  could  they  have  beheld  it, 
the  army  was  got  aboard  the  transports  at  Port 
Tampa.  There  it  stayed  for  a  whole  week,  the 
troops  sweltering  in  the  heat  upon  the  crowded 
boats  lying  still  in  the  foul  waters  by  the  wharves. 
Some  one  gifted  at  '  seem'  things  at  night '  had 
reported  Spanish  men-of-war  near  at  hand,  ready 
to  destroy  the  transports  as  soon  as  they  put  out 
to  sea.  But  at  last  they  were  off  for  Santiago 
by  the  middle  of  June,  convoyed  by  ships  of  war. 

"  Depend  upon  it,  my  boy,"  the  General  had 
said  to  Frank  after  grimly  watching  all  the 
bungling  of  the  embarkation,  "  the  worst  foes 
we'll  meet  in  this  war  are  not  the  Spaniards. 
Eed-tape  at  Washington,  and  incompetence 
among  the  commanding  officers  with  the  army 
will  be  our  deadliest  enemies." 

The  old  soldier  was  right.  There  were  many 
features  of  the  military  operations  in  Cuba  of 
which  the  less  said  the  better.  To  the  food,  and 
arms,  and  ammunition  supplied  the  army,  all 
insufficient  in  quantity  or  poor  in  quality,  most 
of  the  sufferings  and  deaths  among  the  men  must 
be  charged.  But  that  may  now  be  passed  by,  in 
the  hope  that  the  costly  lesson  was  so  well 
learned  by  the  War  Department  that  it  will  not 
have  to  be  repeated.  What  gives  occasion  for 


324  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

just  pride  is  that  our  insufficiently-trained  and 
poorly-equipped  troops  bravely  endured  the  hard- 
ships and  handicaps  caused  by  blundering,  and 
routed  the  enemy  in  every  engagement. 

On  a  bright  Monday  morning  the  work  of  land- 
ing the  troops  was  begun.  The  commander  had 
decided  to  move  against  Santiago  at  once.  His 
fifteen  thousand  officers  and  soldiers  were  put 
ashore  at  Daiquiri.  The  following  day,  the  ad- 
vance was  made  by  the  squadron  of  volunteers 
and  regular  cavalry  under  the  leadership  of  Gen- 
eral Blank.  Frank  and  the  General  were  with 
the  horseless  cavalry  thus  thrown  forward.  The 
latter  was  well  content  to  follow  an  officer  who 
Had  won  fame  as  a  fighter  by  years  of  hard  service 
in  the  Confederacy.  At  night  they  halted  at 
Siboney,  and  decided  upon  the  move  to  be  made 
the  next  day. 

Before  dawn  the  men  were  on  the  march  again. 
In  two  columns  they  moved  along  separate  roads. 
As  they  advanced,  the  intense  heat  began  to  beat 
men  down  to  the  earth.  It  reminded  Frank  of 
India.  In  fact,  ever  since  he  had  entered  Florida, 
the  sight  of  the  sandy  wastes,  and  swamps  and 
palms  and  tropical  fruits  had  caused  an  old  pain 
to  gnaw  at  his  heart  more  sharply  than  usual. 
But  his  stay  amid  like  scenes  and  conditions  in 
India  had  apparently  inured  him  to  the  heat. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  325 

He  pressed  resolutely  forward  along  the  rough 
mountain  trail,  shouting  words  of  encouragement 
to  his  men. 

Suddenly,  deadly  volleys  were  poured  into  the 
advancing  lines  by  unseen  foes.  Screened  by  the 
dense  vegetation,  unrevealed  by  their  smokeless 
powder,  the  Spaniards  were  cutting  down  their 
invaders  with  deadly  Mauser  bullets.  But  the 
advance  was  not  checked.  Firing  as  they  moved 
forward,  the  two  columns  at  last  met.  Their  fire 
soon  silenced  and  put  to  flight  the  enemy.  The 
skirmish  had  won  Los  Guasimas,  though  sixteen 
brave  Americans  had  fallen  to  rise  no  more,  and 
more  than  two  score  had  been  wounded. 

It  was  a  good  beginning.  Had  the  advantage 
gained  been  followed  up  at  once,  the  American 
army  might  have  been  before  the  walls  of  San- 
tiago within  tw7o  days.  Days  of  delay  were  al- 
lowed to  intervene,  during  which  the  Spaniards 
were  constructing  strong  defences  whose  reduc- 
tion would  later  cost  brave  lives. 

On  the  last  day  of  June  another  advance  was 
begun.  Pressing  forward  all  night,  the  army  was 
brought  before  the  lines  and  fortifications  at 
El  Caney  on  the  morning  of  the  first  day  of  July. 
What  with  insufficient  guns,  and  powder  whose 
smoke  showed  the  enemy  where  to  concentrate 
their  fire,  the  reduction  of  El  Caney  cost  a  day's 


326  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

hard  fighting,  and  near  a  hundred  lives,  besides 
upwards  of  three  hundred  wounded  men.  But 
the  pluck  and  good  fighting  of  the  men  won  the 
day  gloriously  against  all  odds.  The  fort  was 
paved  with  dead  men  when  it  was  taken,  and  with 
its  fall  Spain  lost  five  hundred  troops  in  dead  and 
wounded  and  prisoners. 

Meanwhile,  another  division  of  the  army  was 
engaged  in  the  reduction  of  San  Juan.  Most  of 
the  leading  generals  were  too  ill  to  take  part  in 
th'e  fight  that  first  day  of  July.  The  severity  of 
the  climate  was  proving  rather  too  much  for 
veterans  of  the  Civil  War.  More  than  a  quarter 
of  a  century  had  not  left  them  unscathed  in  its 
flight.  Even  valiant  General  Blank  had  become 
dangerously  ill,  and  had  been  forbidden  by  the 
surgeons  to  leave  his  tent.  When  the  roar  of  the 
battle  sounded  in  his  ears,  he  could  restrain  him- 
self no  longer.  Getting  into  an  ambulance,  he 
set  out  for  the  scene  of  battle,  two  miles  distant. 
When  half-way  to  the  front  the  ambulance  halted 
to  let  some  men  pass,  bearing  litters  with 
wounded  men  on  them. 

"  Why  do  you  stop?  "  asked  the  sick  man,  look- 
ing out. 

Then  he  saw  the  litters,  and  the  bearers  toiling 
along  with  them,  and  the  wounded  men  lying  un- 
der the  pitiless  rays  of  the  fierce  noontide  sun. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  327 

"  Here,  bless  my  soul !"  he  cried,  "  Let  me  out 
of  this !" 

Though  he  staggered,  and  had  to  be  helped,  he 
got  out  of  the  ambulance. 

"  Now  men,"  he  called  to  the  litter  bearers, 
"  put  your  litters  in  here,  and  get  those  poor 
fellows  to  the  rear  as  quick  as  you  can." 

When  his  order  was  obeyed  he  called  for  a 
horse  and  mounted  it  with  difficulty.  The  troops 
had  seen  the  act  and  caught  its  meaning.  As  the 
gray-haired  general  rode  forward,  frantic  cheers 
burst  forth  from  his  men,  to  be  taken  up  by  man 
after  man,  until  their  loud  hurrahs  followed  the 
old  soldier  all  down  the  line.  It  was  such  dis- 
regard of  personal  danger  that  had  inspired  the 
troops  of  the  dashing  cavalry  leader  when  he  was 
a  young  man  wearing  the  gray.  No  less  effective 
was  it  then  in  its  influence  over  the  boys  in  blue. 

They  were  having  hard  work.  Infantry  and 
unmounted  cavalry  were  being  put  to  tasks  that 
should  have  been  done  by  artillery.  Again, 
blundering,  black  powder,  and  absence  of  heavy 
guns  were  doing  what  they  could  to  make  courage 
vain.  But  again,  the  blue  lines  moved  forward. 
Steady  fighting  under  heavy  fire,  dauntless 
charges  up  the  slopes  of  a  fortified  hill,  carried 
the  heights  of  San  Juan  as  they  did  El  Caney. 
By  night  the  enemy  had  fled  and  the  tired  and 


328  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

hungry  men,  from  whose  ranks  more  than  six- 
teen hundred  officers  and  men  had  fallen  dead  or 
wounded,  occupied  the  heights  their  valor  had 
won.  They  were  within  four  miles  of  Santiago. 

The  men  had  marched  all  the  night  before  over 
rough  roads  or  through  a  pathless  tangle  of 
woods.  They  had  fought  all  day  in  the  terrible 
heat.  There  was  to  be  no  rest  for  them  that  night, 
for  they  must  intrench  themselves  before  the 
enemy  could  return  to  dislodge  them.  Yet  there 
was  very  little  food  for  them.  An  abundance  of 
it  was  somewhere,  perhaps  with  the  smokeless 
powder  and  heavy  guns,  tangled  up  in  red-tape 
that  would  keep  it  safe. 

The  General,  in  his  capacity  of  colonel,  had 
been  able  to  discover  no  rations  for  his  men. 

"  My  boy,"  he  said,  coming  upon  Frank  as  he 
was  directing  the  labors  of  his  company,  "  doesn't 
this  remind  you  of  an  Indian  famine?  " 

"  It  has  rather  a  lean  look,"  Frank  responded. 

"  Well,  I  find  that  our  country  seems  to  have 
made  not  the  least  provision  in  the  world  for  our 
stomachs,"  the  General  said  rather  ruefully. 
"  There  is  only  one  other  chance.  I  am  going  now 
to  see  whether  Spain  has  been  any  more  thought- 
ful." 

His  search  was  rewarded,  and  his  men  fed  that 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  329 

night  on  the  food  the  Spaniards  had  left  behind 
in  their  flight. 

Morning  brought  an  attack  from  the  enemy. 
Their  fire  continued  all  day,  while  the  men  fought 
and  worked  in  a  drenching  rain.  Even  after 
dark  the  Spaniards  made  another  effort  to  regain 
the  ground  they  had  lost  the  day  before.  It  was 
useless.  What  had  been  bravely  won  was  stub- 
bornly held. 

Back  among  the  sick  and  the  wounded  were  the 
senior  generals  of  the  army.  They  knew  their 
men  were  nearly  worn  out,  that  food  was  scarce, 
that  reinforcements  were  far  away.  There  was 
not  in  their  blood  the  confidence  begotten  by  val- 
orous struggle  against  heavy  odds.  Doubt  was 
darkening  their  counsels.  They  were  actually 
preparing  to  abandon  the  vantage  ground  pur- 
chased by  so  much  priceless  blood,  and  beat  a  re- 
treat to  the  coast.  The  commanding  officer  even 
sent  a  dispatch  to  Washington  announcing  this 
intention.  The  War  Department  was  filled  with 
dismay.  Intrepid  General  Blank,  supported  by 
many  of  the  young  officers,  was  determinedly  op- 
posing such  unsoldierly  folly. 

What  the  outcome  would  have  been  no  one  can 
say,  if  retreating  had  not  been  a  game  at  which 
two  could  play.  Reading  a  message  of  doom  in 
the  advance  of  the  American  army,  the  Spanish 


330  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

admiral,  who  had  long  been  penned  up  in  Santi- 
ago harbor,  decided  to  make  a  dash  for  liberty. 
Thus  it  happened  that  while  the  weary  troops 
were  resting  in  the  trenches,  that  hot  Sunday 
morning,  the  boom  of  mighty  guns  rolled  up  the 
heights  of  San  Juan.  The  soldiers  knew  that  the 
sailors  were  hard  at  work. 

Were  their  battleships  trying  to  force  their  way 
into  Santiago  harbor?  Was  the  American  fleet 
battling  with  the  Spaniards  out  on  the  open  sea? 
Which  was  winning?  What  would  be  the  result? 
Thus  rumor  and  speculation  went  on  to  the  con- 
tinuous thunder  of  the  distant  guns. 

At  length  it  was  known  that,  after  four  hours' 
superb  work,  the  American  fleet  had  left  every 
one  of  the  stately  Spanish  ships  lying  as  ghastly, 
half-submerged  wrecks  along  the  Cuban  coast. 
Not  an  American  ship  was  lost;  only  one  man 
had  been  killed.  The  miracle  of  Manila  Bay  had 
been  repeated  at  Santiago,  under  circumstances 
so  impressive  that  it  could  not  be  set  down  to 
pure  good  luck  by  complacent  critics. 

It  was  decided  by  the  generals  that  the  troops 
should  not  retreat  to  the  coast.  They  stayed 
where  they  were  and  celebrated  the  Fourth  of 
July,  the  soldiers'  victory  at  San  Juan,  and  the 
sailors'  victory  at  Santiago  harbor,  all  in  one. 

After  that  it  was  not  long  till  the  end.    Within 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  331 

a  few  days  Santiago  was  stormed  by  the  combined 
American  land  and  sea  forces.  Another  few  days 
and  the  Spanish  general  surrendered.  A  protocol 
suspended  all  hostilities  a  month  later,  and  be- 
fore the  end  of  September  the  volunteers  were 
being  mustered  out.  The  Spanish  American  war, 
with  its  humiliating  blunders,  and  its  heroic 
achievements,  went  into  history. 

It  was  while  leading  his  men  at  the  storming 
of  the  city  that  Frank  Stanton  felt  something  sud- 
denly strike  him.  A  stinging  pain  ate  its  burning 
way  clear  through  him  just  below  his  left  shoul- 
der. Everything  swam  before  his  eyes.  There 
was  in  his  ears  a  confused  mingling  of  shrieking 
shells  and  victorious  shouts.  Then  came  black- 
ness, and  silence. 


332  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 


CHAPTER  XIX 

STRONG   AS   DEATH 

A  HOT  wind  was  blowing  through  the  extempor- 
ized hospital  where  many  wounded  men  were  ly- 
ing. Without,  the  palm  trees  were  rustling  in 
the  breeze.  Frank  came  to  a  realization  of  it  very 
slowly.  It  seemed  to  him  that  he  was  in  India. 
He  was  feverish  from  his  wound.  Between  con- 
sciousness and  delirium,  he  was  groping  about 
for  some  familiar  sight  or  sound  from  which  he 
could  get  his  bearings.  The  effort  was  vain,  for 
he  soon  lost  himself  altogether  in  troubled  sleep. 

Awaking  again,  he  found  the  room  in  semi- 
darkness.  White  figures  were  moving  noiselessly 
about  in  the  gloom.  Groans  were  breaking  the 
stillness  of  the  night.  He  started  up,  but  fell 
weakly  back  upon  the  pillow  with  a  terrible  pain 
through  his  body.  Was  he  dead  or  dying?  While 
asleep  he  thought  Mabel  had  come  to  him,  and 
that  they  were  happy  together  in  each  other's  love 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  333 

at  the  old  homestead.  Where  was  she,  and  what 
Had  become  of  that  happiness? 

A  slight,  white-robed  figure  came  to  him,  and 
her  face  seemed  dark  as  it  leaned  over  him.  His 
head  was  swimming.  It  was  Radha,  and  she 
pointed  him  to  a  misty  form  far  away  that  he 
knew  was  Mabel.  Then  her  voice  repeated  dis- 
tinctly words  he  had  heard  her  use  long  ago 

"  Night  will  quickly  pass,  fair  will  be  the  dawn. 
The  sun  will  rise  in  splendor,  and  the  beautiful 
lilies  will  unfold  themselves." 

How  gentle  seemed  her  voice,  soft  and  musical 
as  the  murmur  of  water  brooks.  Was  she  pro- 
phesying of  a  fair  day  yet  to  come  to  him  and  his 
beloved?  That  beautiful,  mist-wreathed  form 
seemed  to  be  drawing  nearer. 

The  Indian  girl  was  speaking  again.  Now  her 
face  was  darkened  by  passion,  and  her  voice 
quivered  with  bitter  scorn — • 

"  Thus  dreamed  a  bee,  sleeping  in  a  flower. 
But  while  it  dreamed  there  came  that  way  an 
elephant  and  crushed  it  as  it  lay." 

Mabel's  beautiful  face  shone  white  and  pain- 
drawn  through  the  mantling  mists.  Then,  while 
he  stretched  out  his  arms  and  tried  to  go  to  her, 
she  faded  utterly  away  with  a  long-drawn  wail. 

Frank  started  up  with  a  cry.    Again  the  pain 


334  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

darted  through  his  shoulder,  and  he  came  to  him- 
self. 

"  You  must  lie  still;  you  are  wounded,"  a  calm 
voice  said  to  him. 

A  firm,  cool  hand  pressed  his  brow.  He  saw  a 
slender  woman  beside  the  cot.  A  red  cross 
showed  upon  the  sleeve  of  her  white  dress.  It 
was  a  nurse,  and  not  Kadha. 

"  Was  any  one  else  here?  What  was  that  cry 
I  heard?  "  he  asked. 

"  No  one  else  had  been  near  your  cot  for  some 
time,"  she  replied.  "  The  cries  you  hear  are  from 
wounded  men." 

It  all  came  back  to  him  then.  He  knew  he  had 
fallen  in  the  capture  of  Santiago,  and  was  then 
lying  in  a  hospital. 

"  You  will  get  along  all  right  if  you  are  quiet," 
the  nurse  said  reassuringly.  The  piece  of  shell 
that  struck  you  passed  clean  through  your  shoul- 
der. Your  wound  has  been  dressed.  Drink  this, 
and  try  to  sleep." 

She  pressed  an  invalid's  cup  to  his  lips.  He 
drank  the  broth,  and  closed  his  eyes. 

He  had  been  dreaming  in  his  delirium.  But 
the  reality  to  which  he  had  awakened — was  it  not 
as  bad  as  the  dream?  In  his  weakness  it  seemed 
to  him  he  had  so  little  for  which  to  live  that  he 
wondered  why  the  missile  had  not  veered  a  little 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  335 

and  cut  the  cord  of  life.  All  the  bright  dreams 
of  his  youth  had  ended  as  sadly  as  had  the  bee's. 

A  few  days  later,  Stanton  was  removed  to  the 
transport  Seneca.  All  the  wounded  who  could 
be  moved  were  to  be  sent  home.  Anticipating 
worse  battles  in  the  near  future,  the  commander 
of  the  army  would  not  let  the  hospital  ship  go. 
Someone  made  a  mistake.  The  Seneca  was  over- 
crowded. Doctors  were  too  few.  The  supply  of 
ice  and  delicacies  was  not  sufficient.  The  voy- 
age to  Governor's  Island,  New  York,  was  a  long- 
drawn  agony  to  the  wounded  men.  Terrible  and 
needless  suffering  was  entailed  which  retarded 
the  recovery  of  all,  and  sealed  the  doom  of  many. 

Stanton  bore  the  hardships  of  the  trip  un- 
complainingly. Nothing  seemed  to  matter  much 
any  more.  Even  the  wild  enthusiasm  of  the 
crowd  gathered  to  welcome  home  the  brave  suf- 
ferers interested  him  but  little.  Through  the 
long  weeks  that  he  lay  in  the  hospital  waiting 
for  his  wound  to  heal  and  his  strength  to  come 
back,  his  mind  continually  wandered  amid  the 
ruins  of  his  life.  He  was  dwelling  in  thought  in 
the  burial  places  of  his  hopes.  No  angel  forms 
came  to  roll  away  the  stone  from  their  sepulcher. 
No  voice  divine  bade  the  dead  to  live  again.  Yet 
his  beloved  had  passed  that  way,  though  he  knew 
it  not. 


336  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Mabel  Everest  had  landed  at  New  York.  Her 
brother,  who  had  been  filled  with  gloomy  fore- 
bodings about  her,  was  overjoyed  to  find  her  look- 
ing so  well.  The  voyage  had  done  wonders  for 
her. 

"  Upon  my  honor,  little  Sis,"  he  said,  as  he 
looked  her  over  with  satisfaction,  "  I  expected 
you  to  look  like  those  famine  specimens  the  re- 
ligious papers  have  been  showing  us." 

They  went  on  at  once  to  Lexington.  The  girl 
was  given  a  royal  welcome  by  old  friends  and 
relatives.  It  was  not  easy,  though,  to  take  up 
the  old  life  again.  Every  thing  seemed  changed. 
.Some  friends  were  married  and  gone.  A  few 
were  dead.  All  seemed  different  from  what  they 
had  been.  Mabel  did  not  know  it,  but  the  great- 
est change  was  in  herself.  That,  and  the  unex- 
plained mystery  which  had  hung  about  her  life 
for  many  months,  fixed  a  gulf  between  her  soul 
and  her  once  familiar  friends. 

No  one  mentioned  Frank's  name  in  her  pres- 
ence. She  longed  to  inquire  about  him,  but  could 
not  trust  herself  to  speak.  That  he  had  gone  to 
the  war,  she  had  learned  from  the  papers.  Of 
his  work  with  the  men  at  Camp  Thomas,  the  re- 
port had  reached  her.  It  was  balm  to  her 
wounded  heart  to  know  of  his  noble  life.  But 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  337 

during  her  voyage  she  had  missed  the  papers, 
and  so  lost  all  trace  of  Frank's  movements. 

He  had  written  to  her  once  while  he  was  in 
Chicago.  It  was  an  answer  to  the  note  she  had 
left  for  him.  Penitent  and  despondent  in  tone, 
it  assured  her  that  he  did  not  blame  her  for  giving 
him  up  and  fleeing  from  him.  She  had  noted  with 
a  pang  that  he  did  not  express  any  hope  or 
desire  that  their  lives  might  yet  come  together 
again. 

After  Radha's  death,  she  had  faithfully  dis- 
charged the  solemn  obligation  under  which  the 
dying  girl  had  placed  her.  It  was  a  heavy  task 
that  had  been  laid  upon  her.  Had  she  then 
given  any  sign  to  the  man  that  he  was  yet  lord 
of  her  heart,  it  would  have  seemed  to  her  treason 
to  her  friend  just  dead. 

Stanton's  answer  to  that  letter  had  been  wrung 
from  a  manly  heart,  heroically  bearing  the  con- 
sequence of  its  own  folly.  It  told  of  the  new 
life  begun  at  the  Academy,  and  of  high  resolves 
to  make  the  future  atone  for  the  past  as  far  as 
possible.  But  it  ventured  to  breathe  no  word  of 
love  or  hope  concerning  her.  The  spirit  of  the 
wronged  girl  seemed  to  stand  between  them.  He 
feared  to  speak  to  one  who  had  pronounced  their 
lives  sundered  by  his  union  with  another. 

Mabel  knew  not  what  new  plans  might  have 


338  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

come  into  the  man's  heart.  Perhaps  he  had 
turned  to  some  one  else,  since  she  had  declared 
their  old  relation  was  at  an  end.  So  a  maidenly 
reserve  had  sealed  her  lips.  She  could  no  more 
invite  him  back  to  the  place  he  once  had  held 
than  she  could  at  first  have  asked  him  to  marry 
her. 

Daily  the  girl  scanned  the  papers,  hoping  to 
find  some  mention  of  Frank.  It  was  not  very 
long  after  her  arrival  home  that  her  search  was 
rewarded.  Bold  head-lines  announced  that  Cap- 
tain Stanton  had  returned  to  his  native  city.  A 
leading  article  told  at  length  of  his  useful  life  in 
camp,  and  of  his  brilliant  services  in  the  field. 
There  was  a  graphic  description  of  his  heroism 
at  the  capture  of  Santiago,  followed  by  an  ac- 
count of  his  fall  at  the  head  of  his  men,  and  the 
long  days  since  spent  in  recovering  from  his 
wound.  And  now  he  had  reached  his  home,  so 
weak  that  he  had  been  obliged  to  go  to  the  hos- 
pital. There  the  doctors  had  discovered  that  he 
was  in  the  grip  of  typhoid  fever. 

There  was  more  in  the  article — words  of  well- 
merited  praise  and  appreciation.  But  Mabel 
could  not  then  see  them.  She  longed  to  go  at  once 
to  the  sick  man.  Yet  she  dared  not,  without  his 
invitation.  Most  likely  he  was  as  ignorant  of  her 
whereabouts  as  she  had  been  of  his. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  339 

Hastily  putting  on  her  hat,  she  took  a  car  and 
went  down  town.  There  she  bought  some  flowers 
— the  rich,  red  Jacqueminots  that  Frank  had  al- 
ways loved.  She  waited  while  they  were  made 
ready  to  send.  Then  she  gave  them  to  a  mes- 
senger boy,  with  directions  to  take  them  to  the 
hospital,  see  that  they  were  delivered  at  once, 
and  wait  for  any  answer  that  there  might  be. 

They  were  not  the  first  flowers  that  Frank 
had  received  that  morning.  The  doctor  had  ap- 
prised some  of  his  friends  of  his  arrival  the 
night  before.  He  looked  at  them  rather  list- 
lessly and  took  the  accompanying  card  from  the 
nurse's  hand. 

"  To  welcome  you  home  and  wish  you  a  speedy 
recovery,"  was  scribbled  upon  it  with  lead  pencil. 

Stanton  turned  the  card  over  to  see  the  name. 
Weak  as  he  was,  the  joyous  surprise  of  it  sent 
the  blood  to  his  face  until  it  rivaled  the  color  of 
the  roses.  Then  it  receded  and  left  him  so 
deathly  white  that  the  nurse  was  alarmed. 

"  Can  I  get  a  messenger  boy?"  he  asked  her  in 
a  voice  that  shook  in  spite  of  his  efforts  to  con- 
trol it. 

"  Yes,"  answered  the  nurse,  "  the  boy  who 
brought  these  is  waiting." 

"  Let  me  have  a  pencil  and  paper  and  enve- 
lope," he  requested. 


340  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Slowly  and  painfully,  he  wrote  a  few  words, 
sealed  and  directed  the  envelope. 

"  Tell  the  boy  to  hurry,  please,"  he  said  as  he 
gave  the  note  to  the  woman. 

The  nurse  did  as  she  was  bidden,  and  then 
telephoned  the  doctor  to  know  what  she  should 
henceforth  do  with  notes  for  their  patient.  The 
doctor  said  he  would  be  there  in  a  few  minutes 
and  consider  the  matter. 

Having  hurried  home  Mabel  had  asked  her 
brother's  wife  to  order  the  carriage  and  to  get 
ready  to  drive  with  her.  Mrs.  Everest  agreed 
without  question  or  comment.  She,  too,  had  seen 
the  morning  paper,  and  thought  she  understood 
the  girl's  eager  and  restless  movements. 

"  Will  he  ask  me  to  come  to  him?  "  Mabel  was 
questioning  herself.  "  He  surely  will,  if  only 
because  we  once  were  friends." 

The  anxious  moments  of  waiting  were  passed 
in  changing  hat  and  dress  for  others  more  elegant 
and  becoming.  It  was  such  a  satisfaction  to 
have  the  mirror  tell  her  that  the  sickly  pallor 
of  India  was  all  gone.  To  be  able  to  put  on  that 
dainty  fall  hat,  with  its  rich  braid  and  velvet, 
and  its  bright  autumn  leaves — how  much  better 
it  was  than  a  sola  topi ! 

When  the  messenger  rang  the  bell  he  was  star- 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  341 

tied  by  the  suddenness  and  vigor  with  which  the 
door  flew  open. 

"  Gee!  but  she  must  think  a  heap  of  that  sick 
cove!"  was  his  mental  comment,  as  he  watched 
the  girl's  flushed  face,  and  her  eager  scanning  of 
the  note. 

"  Great  day,  but  she's  a  peach !  "  he  muttered 
to  himself  as  he  went  down  the  walk.  "Wish  I 
was  that  Cap'n,  if  he  is  in  the  horsepital."  The 
liberal  reward  which  the  girl  had  given  him  had 
awakened  him  to  an  appreciation  of  her  charms. 

Mabel  found  the  note  brief  but  eminently  sat- 
isfactory. 

"  My  own  dear  girl — Can  you  come?    Frank." 

That  was  all,  but  it  was  enough.  She  kissed 
the  paper  impulsively,  and  hid  it  in  her  bosom. 

"  Mary,  are  you  ready?  "  she  called  up  the 
stairs  to  her  sister.  The  carriage  was  waiting  at 
the  curb. 

"  I'll  be  there  in  a  minute,  dear,"  Mrs.  Ever- 
est answered. 

It  is  not  always  easy  for  a  mother  and  house- 
wife to  go  out  for  a  morning  drive  on  short  no- 
tice. Several  minutes  passed  before  she  finally 
joined  the  impatient  girl  at  the  door. 

"  To  the  Good  Samaritan,"  Mabel  directed  the 
driver,  and  the  horses  moved  off  at  a  brisk  trot. 

Mrs.  Everest  tried  to  make  conversation  for  a 


342  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

diversion.  She  saw  that  the  girl's  color  was 
coming  and  going,  and  that  her  fingers  were 
twitching  nervously.  A  monologue,  with  occa- 
sional monosyllables  interspersed,  was  all  that 
came  of  the  effort. 

They  were  soon  at  the  hospital.  A  portly 
colored  woman  ushered  them  into  the  office  and 
waddled  leisurely  away  to  find  whether  visitors 
could  see  Captain  Stanton.  In  due  time,  an  at- 
tendant appeared  to  say  that  the  Captain  was 
just  having  a  fever  bath,  but  they  could  go  up 
and  wait  in  the  corridor.  So  they  toiled  up  to 
the  third  floor,  and  sat  looking  out  of  the  window 
at  the  end  of  the  hall. 

After  half  an  hour,  which  seemed  to  Mabel 
more  like  half  a  day,  the  doctor  came  down  the 
hall  and  spoke  to  the  ladies.  Yes,  certainly,  Miss 
Everest  could  see  his  patient.  But  he  was  very 
weak  and  his  temperature  persisted  in  rising. 
She  must  try  not  to  excite  him.  He  must  not 
talk  much,  and  she  could  not  stay  long. 

The  nurse  had  followed  the  doctor  from  the 
room  with  her  arms  full  of  blankets  and  sheets, 
and  other  things.  She  now  came  to  conduct 
Mabel  to  the  sick  man.  Mrs.  Everest  and  the 
doctor  sat  together,  discussing  the  case. 

Ushering  Mabel  into  the  room,  the  nurse  with- 
drew and  closed  the  door. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  343 

In  the  darkened  room  the  girl  saw  the  white 
bed,  and  upon  its  pillow,  the  thin  sallow  face  of 
a  man  who  was  looking  at  her  with  haggard, 
sunken  eyes. 

"  Oh,  my  poor  boy,"  she  cried,  as  she  saw  that 
changed  face.  She  was  on  her  knees  at  the  bed- 
side. 

"  I  was  afraid  you  would  not  come,"  he  said, 
as  his  thin,  hot  hands  closed  upon  hers,  and  his 
eyes  searched  her  face. 

"  How  could  you  doubt  me?  "  she  asked. 

"  The  bitter  past,"  he  said  in  a  voice  weak,  and 
dead  tired.  "  My  ruined  life.  What  right  had  I 
to  hope  you  would  come?  " 

"  Listen,"  she  said.  Then  she  repeated  words 
that  had  been  a  guiding  star  to  her  through  many 
dark  and  doubtful  nights — 

'  The  sin  that  practice  burns  into  the  blood, 
And  not  the  one  dark  hour  which  brings  remorse, 
Will  brand  us,  after,  of  whose  fold  we  be.' 

"  Say  it  again,"  he  eagerly  demanded. 

She  repeated  the  lines,  slowly  and  distinctly. 

"Can  you  forgive  all,  then?"  he  asked,  while 
his  grasp  tightened  convulsively  upon  her  hands. 

"  All,"  she  answered. 

"  Thank  God,"  he  murmured  fervently,  and  lay 
still  for  a  moment  with  closed  eyes. 


344  FIRES  OF  DESIRE. 

The  girl  said  softly,  leaning  over  him — 

'  Love  is  strong  as  death  ; 
Many  waters  cannot  quench  love, 
Neither  can  the  floods  drown  it.' 

Releasing  her  hands,  he  unfastened  his  collar. 
Then  he  drew  forth  a  narrow  ribbon.  Upon  it 
was  suspended  a  ring.  It  was  the  diamond  Mabel 
had  returned  to  him. 

"  I  have  worn  it  all  the  time,"  he  said,  smiling 
as  she  watched  him.  "  There  were  nights  in 
Chicago  when  I  used  to  walk  the  floor  and  crush 
this  stone  into  my  flesh.  It  helped  me." 

He  was  fumbling  at  the  ribbon  with  shaking 
hands.  She  had  to  help  him  take  the  ring  off. 
To  his  look  of  inquiry  and  entreaty  as  he  took  her 
tiand,  she  nodded  her  head  and  smiled  at  him 
through  her  tears.  He  slipped  the  ring  upon  her 
finger  and  kissed  it  and  her  hand.  She  bent  her 
head  and  kissed  his  lips. 

When  the  doctor  tapped  at  the  door  to  say  it 
was  time  for  his  patient  to  be  left  to  himself, 
Stanton  was  lying  very  still,  and  the  girl  was 
sitting  by  the  bed  holding  his  hand.  The  phy- 
sician looked  at  the  sick  man's  face  with  satis- 
faction. He  saw  on  it  a  new  look  of  contentment 
and  determination. 

"  You  must  come  again,  Miss  Everest,"  he  said. 
"  You  are  good  medicine  for  the  Captain." 


«jYou  must  come  again,  Miss  Everest.' 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  345 

Long  days  of  anxiety  followed.  The  fever  ran 
its  slow  course.  Frank  had  been  so  weakened  by 
long  illness  from  his  wound  that  there  was  little 
power  of  resistance  left  in  him.  Yet  the  deter- 
mination to  live  was  so  strong  in  him  since  the 
day  of  his  new  betrothal  that  it  did  wonders  for 
him. 

The  crisis  came.  His  life  trembled  upon  the 
very  abyss  of  death.  He  pressed  so  close  the  edge 
of  the  precipice  that  the  watchers  about  his  bed. 
held  their  breath.  He  paused  upon  that  narrow 
margin.  Then  he  turned  back  toward  life. 

Early  in  the  days  of  his  convalescence  Mr. 
Everest  was  for  carrying  Frank  away  to  his 
home. 

"  Why,  man,"  he  protested  to  the  implacable 
doctor,  "  my  women  folk  can  do  more  for  him 
than  a  whole  army  of  your  automatic  nurses." 

"  I  have  reason  to  have  great  faith  in  the  abil- 
ity of  your  women  folk  to  help  my  patient,"  the 
doctor  replied  blandly.  "  But  I  know  he  will 
soon  be  as  ravenous  as  a  starved  wolf.  The  good 
ladies  of  your  house  would  probably  let  him  have 
anything  he  wants.  No,  thank  you ;  I  don't  care 
to  risk  a  relapse." 

So  they  had  to  wait  and  make  the  best  of  it. 
Mabel  was  happy  and  patient.  Frank  was  im- 
patient and  happy.  Between  them,  they  made 


346  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

the  days  pass  somehow,  until  the  doctor  set 
Frank  free. 

There  was  no  resisting  Mr.  Everest's  hospital- 
ity. Frank  was  borne  away  home,  to  stay  till 
after  Christmas.  That  was  but  a  week  off. 

The  gates  of  Paradise  had  swung  wide  open 
before  the  man.  With  the  returning  force  of 
youthful  health  pulsing  through  his  veins,  and  the 
music  of  glad  hope  ringing  in  his  heart,  he  was 
entering  into  the  high  heritage  of  chastened  and 
victorious  manhood.  Christmas  came  with  great 
good  cheer.  The  Everest  home  was  bright  with 
the  season's  joys,  and  with  other  happiness  that 
the  coming  and  going  of  seasons  could  not  change. 

After  that,  Frank  went  away  to  see  his  old 
friend  in  the  hill  country  of  Virginia.  He  had 
some  plans  he  must  perfect.  Then  he  would 
come  for  his  bride. 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  347 


CHAPTER  XX 

LOVE'S  CORONATION 

VARIOUS  opportunities  were  beckoning  to  Stan- 
ton  as  he  prepared  to  take  up  the  tasks  of  life 
again.  His  power  over  men  had  become  widely 
enough  known  to  have  him  sought  out.  He  chose 
to  go  back  to  his  work  with  the  man  who  had  be- 
friended him  in  his  hour  of  dire  need. 

General  Sinclair  had  resumed  the  direction  of 
the  Academy.  Sturdy  old  soldier  that  he  was, 
his  rough  experience  in  Cuba  had  left  him  but 
little  the  worse  for  wear.  The  cadets  who  had 
gone  into  the  army  were  back  too;  all  save  the 
one  who  had  died  of  fever  at  Camp  Thomas,  and 
the  two  who  were  sleeping  their  last  sleep  upon 
the  field  of  glory.  The  General  and  the  soldier 
boys  had  been  given  a  rousing  welcome  by  all  the 
cadets  when  they  returned.  They  were  prepar- 
ing to  do  the  like  for  Stanton  upon  his  arrival. 

The  evening  after  his  return  the  General  and 


348  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

Frank  were  sitting  together  by  the  fireside.  The 
boys  had  done  themselves  proud  all  the  afternoon 
in  receiving  back  their  friend  and  instructor.  It 
was  now  time  for  the  two  men  to  talk  quietly 
together. 

"  My  boy,"  said  the  older  man,  "  you  certainly 
must  admit  that  there  is  no  need  to  keep  you  on 
probation  any  longer.  You  know  something  of 
the  opportunities  here.  Are  you  willing  to  make 
this  your  life-work?  Will  you  agree  to  take  the 
superintendency  of  the  Academy  when  I  give  it 
up?" 

"  General,"  answered  Stanton,  "  I  am  anxious 
to  make  this  my  life-work.  As  for  succeeding 
you,  no  man  could  ask  a  higher  honor  than  to 
become  worthy  to  do  so.  When  you  are  ready  to 
pass  the  work  on  to  another,  I  shall  be  happy  if 
you  think  me  fit  to  take  it." 

The  General  flushed  with  pleasure  and  satis- 
faction. 

"  I  certainly  am  glad  to  hear  you  say  that,  sir," 
he  said,  laying  his  hand  affectionately  on  the 
young  man's  shoulder.  "  It  relieves  me  of  a 
serious  problem.  Never  before  you  came  had  I 
found  a  man  to  whom  I  was  sure  I  could  trust 
this  work.  I  shall  hold  you  to  your  promise  be- 
fore very  long  now." 

True  to  his  old  habit  of  reticence,  Frank  had 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  349 

sent  his  friend  no  word  of  his  approaching  mar- 
riage. He  told  him  about  it  that  night. 

When  he  spoke  of  how  the  shadow  of  his  sin 
had  fallen  between  him  and  his  beloved,  he  did 
so  with  downcast  eyes.  But  as  he  went  on  to  tell 
how  Mabel  had  loved  him  in  spite  of  it  all,  and 
how  she  had  forgiven  him,  his  face  glowed  and 
he  looked  up  proudly. 

"  So  she  is  coming  to  be  with  me  here.  I  am 
not  worthy;  I  do  not  know  how  she  can  do  it. 
But  it  is  true,  and  I  am  a  happy  man." 

"  I  congratulate  you,  my  boy,"  said  the  General 
warmly  shaking  Frank's  hand.  l(  A  man  can 
know  no  greater  happiness  in  life  than  to  win 
a  queenly  woman.  As  for  the  past — never  bring 
it  up  again.  You  have  learned  its  lessons.  Let 
it  go." 

"  There  are  some  things  a  man  can  never  for- 
get," he  answered  sadly.  "  There  must  always 
be  bitterness  in  my  cup  of  joy.  My  mother,  little 
Kadha,  Mabel's  cruel  trial — no,  I  cannot  forget. 
Life  can  never  be  the  same." 

The  black  pall  had  fallen  upon  him  again.  It 
ever  would  at  the  thought  of  the  past.  He  bowed 
his  head  upon  his  hands. 

"  But  I  am  facing  the  future  now,"  he  said 
more  brightly  after  a  moment.  "  My  noble  girl 
has  forgiven  the  past.  Truly  '  love's  strength 


350  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

standeth  in  love's  sacrifice.'  Her  sacrifice  is  an 
offering  that  redeems  my  life." 

There  was  silence  in  the  room.  The  young  man 
was  thinking  of  the  bright  future.  General  Sin- 
clair was  looking  at  the  portrait  of  the  bride  he 
had  left  so  long  ago  in  all  her  fresh  young  beauty 
— left  to  meet  no  more  in  life.  His  keen  eyes 
glowed  beneath  his  white  brows  with  the  fires  of 
a  love  that  three  and  a  half  decades  of  separation 
had  not  quenched.  He  inhaled  the  fragrance  of 
flowers  that  had  withered  five  and  thirty  years 
agone.  To  retain  their  perfume  thus  long,  they 
must  have  been  of  rare  excellence  in  the  far-off 
time  before  ruthless  hands  tore  them  away,  and 
the  iron  shod  feet  of  war  trampled  them  to  death. 

At  length  the  old  man  sighed  and  shook  off  his 
revery.  His  voice  was  gentle  as  a  woman's  when 
he  spoke. 

"  You  must  bring  your  dear  girl  here  to  our 
home  until  you  can  build  one  of  your  own.  Sis- 
ter and  I  would  be  delighted  to  keep  you  both  al- 
ways, but  that  will  not  be  best.  You  must  build 
a  nest  for  your  bird." 

In  after  years  it  was  all  as  they  planned  it 
that  night.  Across  the  parade  ground  the  new 
house  arose  in  the  grove  of  stately  trees.  The 
young  man  succeeded  the  old  General  in  the  work 
of  training  stalwart  men  for  the  South.  Every 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  351 

room  and  corridor  of  the  new  house  rang  with 
the  laughter  of  merry  children.  A  beautiful 
woman  so  won  the  hearts  of  the  lads  who  fell 
under  the  sweet  influence  of  her  life,  that  she 
was  known  wherever  the  Academy  boys  went  as 
"  Queen  of  the  Cadets."  But  that  is  a  dip  into 
the  future — the  future  where  ranged  Frank's 
dreams  as  he  sat  with  the  General  that  night. 

In  February  Stanton  went  back  to  Lexington 
to  claim  his  bride.  It  was  her  fancy  to  be  wed 
upon  St.  Valentine's  Day. 

The  day  had  been  bright,  and  the  night  was 
crisp  and  clear  when  the  guests  came  merrily  to 
the  Everest  home.  Only  the  nearest  relatives  and 
friends  of  the  families  were  invited. 

Mrs.  Everest  took  her  place  at  the  piano  and 
began  to  play  the  wedding-march.  Down  the 
broad  stairway  little  Tom  Everest  and  his  sister 
Elsie  came,  scattering  flowers  before  them.  They 
were  followed  by  the  maid  of  honor  and  grooms- 
man, Mabel's  pretty  cousin  from  Georgetown, 
and  Frank's  old  college  chum.  Then  came  the 
bride  and  groom —  he  tall  and  straight,  with  the 
rich  flush  of  new-found  health  upon  his  handsome 
face — she  with  downcast  eyes,  radiant  in  the 
beauty  of  her  perfect  womanhood. 

Beneath  a  bower  of  flowers  waited  the  gray- 
haired  pastor  who  had  known  them  both  from 


352  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

babyhood.  Before  bim  the  bridal  party  paused, 
while  the  notes  of  the  wedding  march  grew  softer 
and  softer,  until  they  gradually  ceased.  Mr. 
Everest  stepped  forward  to  give  away  the  bride. 
Voices  sounded  through  the  silent  room  in  ad- 
monition and  question,  in  response  and  vow. 
The  minister  raised  his  hands  toward  heaven  in 
invocation,  and  laid  them  upon  the  heads  of  the 
man  and  woman  in  benediction. 

The  piano  sounded  again  and  children's  voices 
took  up  the  notes  of  the  wedding  chorus.  Friends 
pressed  forward  with  handshakes  and  kisses  and 
congratulations  and  best  wishes  for  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Stanton. 

The  supper  was  over  and  the  guests  were  gone. 
Accompanied  by  her  bridesmaid,  Mabel  had 
gone  to  her  room.  It  was  her  wish,  and  that  was 
law,  to  remain  in  the  old  home  for  a  few  days. 
In  the  room  of  her  girlhood's  joys,  where  she  had 
lain  through  the  live-long  night  sleepless  from 
happiness  when  she  first  knew  that  her  heart's 
idol  had  chosen  her  as  his  own,  where  she  had 
been  sleepless  from  anguish  when  she  thought  she 
had  lost  him — there  in  the  chamber  of  love's 
dream  she  would  begin  her  wedded  life. 

The  bridesmaid  left  the  room  and  Mrs.  Ever- 
est called  down  the  stairway  to  Frank  to  come. 
He  came  quickly  through  the  door  and  softly 


FIRES  OF  DESIRE  353 

closed  it.  Then  he  stood  still  and  looked  about 
him.  A  fire  was  crackling  and  dancing  in  the 
grate.  Upon  mantel  and  chiffonier  and  table, 
stood  waxen  tapers  in  candlesticks  of  crystal  and 
silver.  In  their  soft  light  were  revealed  the  per- 
fect appointments  of  a  room  that  had  come  to 
reflect  the  simple  purity  of  the  life  it  so  long  had 
sheltered. 

And  then —  yes,  the  inner  shrine  of  the  sanc- 
tuary, for  every  temple  must  have  its  holy  of 
holies,  where  dwells  the  Presence — he  saw  the 
snowy  bed,  and  beside  it  a  table  which  held  a 
great  bowl  of  perfect  Jacqueminots.  On  the  bed> 
amid  its  pure  white  folds,  lay  his  bride.  Her 
hands  were  beneath  her  head,  and  over  the  white- 
ness of  her  arms,  and  upon  the  pillow  her  glo- 
rious hair  shone  like  a  halo.  Upon  her  breast, 
amid  the  lace  of  her  gown,  there  lay  a  deep  red 
rcse. 

Their  eyes  met.  The  bride  smiled  and  stretched 
out  her  arms  to  the  man.  He  went  swiftly  to 
her  side,  and  fell  upon  his  knees.  He  took  her 
hands  in  his.  Only  his  eyes  spoke  as  the  love- 
light  burned  in  their  deep  depths. 

"  Do  you  like  me?  "  she  archly  asked  at  length. 

He  put  his  arms  about  her,  and  kissed  her  lips 
and  brow,  again  and  again. 


354  FIRES  OF  DESIRE 

"  My  darling,"  he  cried  in  a  low,  vibrant  voice. 
"  My  beautiful  bride ;  mine  forever." 

It  was  love's  coronation.  In  its  triumph 
shared  the  mother  whose  last  words  were  words 
of  supplication  for  her  boy,  and  the  dark  little 
stranger  of  far  Bengal  who  had  been  willing  to 
be  effaced  for  the  good  of  the  man  she  adored, 
and  the  maiden  whose  love  had  lived  on  through 
the  darkness  until  the  coming  of  the  day  of  vic- 
tory. 


THE      ROMANCE      OF      A       POET 

HIGHLAND 
MARY 

By 
CLAYTON  MACKENZIE   LEGGE 

The  Sweetest  Story  Ever  Told 
Re-Told  in  a  New  Way 


A  novel  of  more  than  ordinary  interest, 
portraying  many  important  characters 
and  telling  for  the  first  time  in  fiction 
the  sweet  love  story  of  "Bobby  Burns" 
and  Highland  Mary. 


ILLUSTRATED  ...  CLOTH  BOUND 

Price 
$1.50 

THE  C  ML  CLARK  PUBLISHING  CO. 
BOSTON,  MASS. 


The  Lieutenant 
The  Girl  and 
The  Viceroy 


By 

MARSHALL 

PUTNAn 

THOMPSON 


The  Story  of  an  American  Lieutenant, 

a  Patriotic  Beauty  and  a  Spanish 

Viceroy  in  South  America 


F  you  would  read  a  romance,  founded  on 
South  American  and  American  history,  a 
romance  that  will  stir  your  blood  and  hold 
your  attention  from  the  moment  you  begin 
until  you  have  read  the  last  page,  by  all  means  read 
"  The  Lieutenant,  The  Girl  and  The  Viceroy."  Not 
a  dry  or  prosy  page  in  the  whole  book.  Beautifully 
written  and  cleverly  told.  Correct  in  historic  infor- 
mation, but  romantic  in  conception. 

ILLUSTRATED        -  -        CLOTH   BOUND 

Price 
$1.50 

THE  C  M.  CLARK  PUBLISHING  CO. 
BOSTON,  MASS. 


A  Truly  Great  Story 


THIS  WAS  A  MAN!" 

By  HATTIE  HORNER  LOUT  HAN 


His  life  was  gentle ;  and  the  elements 

So  mix'd  in  him,  that  Nature  might  stand  up 

And  say  to  all  the  world  "This  Was  a  Man ! " 

— Shakespeare 


The  Victory  of  a  Character  over 
Circumstances. 


F  you  read  but  one  book  this  year,  this  is 
the  book  that  you  should  read.  It  is  the 
most  powerful,  soul-stirring  tale  that  has 
passed  through  the  presses  in  many  years. 
It  is  a  story  of  heredity,  a  story  based  on  the  belief 
that  "blood  will  tell,"  a  story  of  sinners  and  of  one 
who  "was  a  man."  The  scene  is  laid  in  Colorado  at 
the  present  time.  Frontispiece  of  Paul  the  hero. 


ATTRACTIVELY    BOUND    IN     CLOTH 

Price 
$1.50 

THE  C  M.  CLARK  PUBLISHING  CO. 
BOSTON,  MASS. 


